2021-12-20                         from the editor of ~insom
   ------------------------------------------------------------

   I've been on vacation for a week. It's been great. I've done
   a bunch of dabbling.

   I've been trying out SFML and wrote some simple (really
   simple) trigonometry + C++ stuff, which had the pleasing
   feeling of solving a puzzle. I'm pretty sure that's the high
   I'm always looking to chase when programming but which
   rarely comes up in my real life.

   Early on in the break I tested a mic amplifier design
   (someone else's) by doing very sketchy non-SMT soldering of
   a tiny part. It worked. Now I feel slightly honour-bound to
   follow the whole project through: I've designed a PCB in
   EasyEDA (my first time using that) and I have four
   convincing failures of a milled PCB done with FlatCAM/bCNC
   and my 3018 mill. Still: the next one has a reasonable
   chance of working.

   In anticipation of it working, I've even gotten some solder
   paste so I can try and reflow the parts using hot-air. I've
   never done this, either.

   ---

   Other stuff: re-organizing the office is its own
   distraction. I repaired a broken Razer Blackwidow keyboard
   (bad USB lead) but it's still kind of iffy and I'm not
   totally sure why -- seems like sometimes when it's plugged
   in it fails USB negotiation. But sometimes it works.

   I took the screen from my scrap X131e and a controller board
   from eBay and I was able to fit it (pretty perfectly, with
   hot glue) into the case I still had from a different broken
   LCD. Repair win. It now occurs to me that the screen that I
   bought (and broke) was probably also recycled from a dead
   laptop or tablet. That would be nice.

   I finished Termination Shock (which was great), the latest
   Murderbot Diary (which was short, but they're comfortable
   reads) and I've started on Hyperion. Not loving it so far,
   but many people do, so perhaps I need to give it longer.