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On Thursday I mentioned we were restarting the Snapcraft Clinic. Basically we stand up a regular video call with engineers from the snap and snapcraft team & us from Snap Advocacy. Developers of applications and publishers of snaps are invited to join to troubleshoot.

There was nothing especially secret or private discussed, but as we don’t record or stream the calls, and I don’t have direct permission to mention the applications or people involved, so I’ll keep this a little vague. In future I think we should ask permission and record the outcomes of the calls.

Like many during The Event I bought an Air Fryer. Specifically I got the Pro Breeze XL 5.5L (affiliate link) from Amazon. I honestly didn’t do a tremendous amount of research, just reading a few reviews and using those as my basis for what to buy. The Pro Breeze models come in different sizes, and the reviews for the smaller model suggest the larger 5.5L one is preferable. I’m lucky enough to have enough kitchen workspace to leave it out on the side, so went for the larger model. It cost £89.99 and was delivered promptly.

At work we have a forum where developers can discuss packaging Linux applications, specifically as snaps. Sometimes developers just want to pair through a problem to get it either resolved for themselves, or for whatever is blocking to be handed off to the right people.

One strategy for supporting developers we found effective was via regular live video conference. So last year we started the Snapcraft Clinic. On a semi-regular basis we dedicate time to join with anyone who has technical issues with snapping, to help them.

Helping your users stay up to date on their workstation is something I believe OS vendors should endeavour to do, to the best of their ability. Some users aren’t able to find time to install updates, or are irritated by update dialogs. Others are skeptical of their contents, some even block updates completely.

No OS vendor wants to be “That Guy” featuring in the news as millions of their customers are found to be vulnerable on their watch. Equally, respecting the user, given it’s their computing device, is vital too. It’s a difficult balance to strike. Somewhere in between “That Linux distro which nags me constantly to do updates” and “That distro which is outdated and insecure” erring towards the former, is probably the sweet spot.

As I mentioned in a previous book review, I’m a bit of a fan of time travel fiction. So after reading and enjoying Off to Be the Wizard (affiliate link) by Scott Meyer. the AI fed me My friend Marian on Telegram recommended Split Second (Split Second Book 1) (affiliate link) by Douglas E. Richards.

The premise revolves around a time-travel capability which can only send things back in time a split second (hence the title) rather than the weeks or years that other science fiction in the genre tend to exploit for their storyline.

Before last week, I’d never heard of SonoBus. While on holiday I’d packaged up Spot - a Gtk Spotify client, which I wrote about recently. The next day I made a snap of SonoBus too! I did this because while there were binary builds for Windows and Mac, there was no binary release for Linux, other than in the Arch User Repository.

For those that, like me, didn’t know about SonoBus, it’s an “easy to use application for streaming high-quality, low-latency peer-to-peer audio between devices over the internet or a local network”.

Only weeks ago, I blogged about Trying Proper Coffee. Well, I tucked into the Lavazza (affiliate link) and ran out this week! I only bought the Lavazza because I recognised the brand, and needed something to drink. With me running low, I wanted to get suggestions for what to try next on my coffee journey.

So I put the call out to “Coffee Twitter”!

Oh no! Running low! ☕
Dear UK Coffee twitter. What coffee should I buy next on my journey. This was lavazza red bought from Amazon. New to this, so taking suggestions. pic.twitter.com/zMflhAXHXO

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“Printers are devices for causing pain and frustration. They also sometimes print stuff out.” - Me, many times over the years.

I have an HP LaserJet 100 MFP M175nw networked laser printer / scanner / copier. I’ve had it since 2013 where it’s generally worked okay most of the time. We don’t print a ton of things in this house, but when we do, it’s typically urgently required for work or school. It can drop off the network now and then, or just refuse to print sometimes. It’s always useful when it works, and frequently frustrating when it doesn’t.

Nearly thirteen years ago, on 11th March 2008, a few members of the Ubuntu UK Local Community Team released S01E01 of the Ubuntu UK Podcast. Ciemon Dunville, Dave Walker, Tony Whitmore and I had recorded it on the previous Saturday in my cramped, messy home office.

In the following seven years we recorded 187 episodes as “Ubuntu UK Podcast” - affectionately known as “uupc”. A re-brand in season eight to just “Ubuntu Podcast” led to another six years comprising another 251 episodes.

I had a few days off work this week. It was very enjoyable to spend a bit more time with the family, doing some jobs around the house, going for walks, and generally nothing else, thanks to The Event.

However, in the quiet moments I still find myself browsing around, stumbling on new software I know will be enjoyed by my friends on Linux, and feel compelled to package it up, as a snap. This time around I found a post on /r/gnome about “Spot” a Gtk/Rust Spotify client.