Nostr notes by r1w1s1

Happy Birthday, Patrick Volkerding! 🎂 Thank you for more than ...

2026-10-20T15:11:43Z

Happy Birthday, Patrick Volkerding! 🎂

Thank you for more than three decades of dedication to Slackware Linux and for keeping the Unix philosophy alive.

Long live Slackware! 🐧

#slackware

Slackware + Btrfs subvolumes. I wrote a short guide for ...

2026-10-16T16:54:44Z

Slackware + Btrfs subvolumes.

I wrote a short guide for installing Slackware64-current with @ and @home using the standard installer.

https://codeberg.org/r1w1s1/code-notes/raw/branch/master/notes/README_BTRFS.TXT
#slackware #btrfs

Linus Torvalds used AI to make complex Linux kernel code more ...

2026-10-12T18:13:19Z

Linus Torvalds used AI to make complex Linux kernel code more readable and uncover bugs dating back to 2013.

Meanwhile, some open source communities are actively avoiding AI-assisted development.

I find this contrast interesting.

Should we judge software by its quality, security, and maintainability, or by the tools developers use?

Curious to hear your thoughts.

https://www.phoronix.com/news/Linus-Torvalds-Assoc-Array

Thanks! After adding rc.font detection, I decided to change wm to ...

2026-10-03T16:13:53Z

In reply to nevent1q…7ttc
_________________________

Thanks! After adding rc.font detection, I decided to change wm to session. It makes more sense since slackfetch can detect both X11 and console sessions now. :)

CC: Mark (npub1wy2…hy0n) jloc0 (npub16l0…f0y2)

Thanks! After adding rc.font detection, I decided to change wm to ...

2026-10-03T16:08:09Z

Blade Runner (1982) is one of my favorite films, and Rachael is ...

2026-10-01T22:05:30Z

Blade Runner (1982) is one of my favorite films, and Rachael is one of my favorite characters.
I like her so much that my ThinkPad’s hostname is RachaelTyrell. :)

Nice! Is that shod's built-in tabbing, or are you using ...

2026-09-30T19:06:10Z

In reply to nevent1q…999t
_________________________

Nice! Is that shod's built-in tabbing, or are you using tabbed? I used PekWM for a while and really liked its grouping feature too.

From a Teletype printing ls -l on paper to xterm displaying it on ...

2026-09-29T17:46:14Z

From a Teletype printing ls -l on paper to xterm displaying it on a screen.
Decades later, the UNIX terminal abstraction is still here.

Great read: https://jasoneckert.github.io/myblog/teletype/

Nice to see slackfetch in there 😄 Feedback is always welcome!

2026-09-28T23:56:30Z

In reply to nevent1q…3lst
_________________________

Nice to see slackfetch in there 😄 Feedback is always welcome!

Love seeing Slackware giving new life to a $63 potato. 😄 And ...

2026-09-28T23:05:52Z

In reply to nevent1q…z6wm
_________________________

Love seeing Slackware giving new life to a $63 potato. 😄 And gentoo-btw as the hostname makes it even better.

If you're still interested in Motif, mwm, Xt, Xlib and the ...

2026-09-26T16:05:09Z

If you're still interested in Motif, mwm, Xt, Xlib and the classic X11 world, this is worth a look:

https://motif-central.org/

Really nice to see this knowledge being collected and kept alive. :)

#motif #mwm #cde #emwm

I’ve released slackfetch 1.2.0. Recent changes in Slackware, ...

2026-09-26T15:44:40Z

I’ve released slackfetch 1.2.0.

Recent changes in Slackware, including the introduction of /etc/default/rc.font for configuring the console font, motivated this update.

This release improves session detection and makes the output more accurate:

session: console tty2 (font: Ttyp0 OTB 14)
session: ssh pts/0
session: cwm (XLibre 1.25.2.2, font: Ttyp0 OTB 14)
session: kwin (Wayland)

The local console font is read from /etc/default/rc.font. SSH sessions are identified separately, without incorrectly reporting the
server’s console font as the client’s font.

The old wm: field has been replaced by the clearer session: field.

https://forge.slackware.nl/r1w1s1/slackfetch

#Slackware #linux #shell #slackfetch

Nice! And great to see slackfetch there too :)

2026-09-26T13:44:24Z

In reply to nevent1q…j8j4
_________________________

Nice! And great to see slackfetch there too :)

Two new font families landed in Slackware-current: UW ttyp0 and ...

2026-09-26T01:48:06Z

Two new font families landed in Slackware-current: UW ttyp0 and Spleen!

Both are also available in the installer, which now uses the updated rc.font for
automatic console font sizing. Spleen is the new default console font.

UW ttyp0 is my personal favorite. I use WET-Ttyp0Regular22x11 on my laptop’s console.

Thanks, Patrick!

https://people.mpi-inf.mpg.de/~uwe/misc/uw-ttyp0/
https://github.com/fcambus/spleen

#Slackware #Linux #Fonts

Sure! We're on #simplebase at irc.oftc.net. See you there! :)

2026-09-25T15:42:51Z

In reply to nevent1q…vfft
_________________________

Sure! We're on #simplebase at irc.oftc.net.
See you there! :)

Absolutely! That keyboard is one of the best things about the ...

2026-09-25T02:54:12Z

In reply to nevent1q…0de5
_________________________

Absolutely! That keyboard is one of the best things about the X220. I'm keeping mine too. :)

Thanks! :) I think the X220 has aged really well. :) Miss you in ...

2026-09-25T02:53:31Z

In reply to nevent1q…zxmq
_________________________

Thanks! :) I think the X220 has aged really well. :) Miss you in the IRC

A nice little improvement in Slackware-current: rc.font now ...

2026-09-25T02:44:09Z

A nice little improvement in Slackware-current: rc.font now supports automatic font sizing and configuration through /etc/default/rc.font.

I used it to set my Linux console to UW ttyp0, the same font family I enjoy in xterm:FONT=WET-Ttyp0Regular22x11

Looks great on my laptop. Small details make a difference. 🙂

https://people.mpi-inf.mpg.de/~uwe/misc/uw-ttyp0/
#Slackware #Linux #Typography

Haha, other Linux is forgiven. :) Great to see another X220 still ...

2026-09-25T02:27:44Z

In reply to nevent1q…kke9
_________________________

Haha, other Linux is forgiven. :) Great to see another X220 still fully operational in 2026!

Thanks! :) There's something special about these old ...

2026-09-25T02:27:23Z

In reply to nevent1q…75uc
_________________________

Thanks! :) There's something special about these old ThinkPads. Still a pleasure to use after 15 years.

ThinkPad X220 (2011) running Slackware-current in 2026. Linux ...

2026-09-24T00:37:11Z

ThinkPad X220 (2011) running Slackware-current in 2026.

Linux console + tmux. Sometimes that's all you need. :)

#slackware #thinkpad

Nice to see other Slackware-current users sharing their ...

2026-09-23T01:47:36Z

In reply to nevent1q…mk60
_________________________

Nice to see other Slackware-current users sharing their experiences here. Thanks Mark (npub1wy2…hy0n), moldavia (npub1h7q…fj8h) and garpu (npub15uf…d677)! :)

Slackware-current is not simply a repository where every new ...

2026-09-22T19:35:23Z

Slackware-current is not simply a repository where every new upstream release gets pushed automatically.

There is curation and integration before changes land, with Patrick Volkerding playing a central role in that process.

I run -current on 3 physical machines + a VirtualBox VM I use professionally every day. It has been remarkably reliable.

Interesting discussion on Reddit:
https://www.reddit.com/r/linux/comments/1w96px4/slackware_16_alpha_1_available_following_gcc_162/

#slackware

Exactly. The mail server itself isn't the hard part. Keeping ...

2026-09-22T14:50:25Z

In reply to nevent1q…slqp
_________________________

Exactly. The mail server itself isn't the hard part. Keeping a good reputation and dealing with abuse and blacklists is where most of the work is. :)

That's a good reason to do it. :) Running your own mail ...

2026-09-19T19:40:55Z

In reply to nevent1q…uqrf
_________________________

That's a good reason to do it. :) Running your own mail server is definitely a great way to learn, and I agree, email isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

An interesting article from Gilles Chehade, author of OpenSMTPD, ...

2026-09-19T13:08:56Z

An interesting article from Gilles Chehade, author of OpenSMTPD, from 2019.

“Self-hosting mail is not HARD but requires WORK, which are two different things.”

I ran mail servers for more than 10 years, much of that time in Asia, where we had to deal with a significant amount of spam. It's also been more than 10 years since I last managed one. Not because I don't want to, but simply because I haven't had the opportunity since then. And running a mail server just for myself doesn't make much sense to me.

Still worth reading today.

https://poolp.org/posts/2019-08-30/you-should-not-run-your-mail-server-because-mail-is-hard/
#email #opensmtpd #sendmail #postfix

Repology is currently unavailable due to a domain/registrar ...

2026-09-18T01:09:26Z

Repology is currently unavailable due to a domain/registrar issue, but the service itself is still running.

As the maintainer of 100+ SlackBuilds, I use Repology all the time to track upstream releases.

Temporary /etc/hosts workaround:

92.63.176.157 repology.org
2a03:6f01:1:2::f159 repology.org

Add both IPv4 and IPv6.

Details: https://github.com/repology/repology-rs/issues/560

#repology #slackware

True! But I found the Eee PC community on Reddit and somehow fell ...

2026-09-16T19:48:15Z

In reply to nevent1q…3e3v
_________________________

True! But I found the Eee PC community on Reddit and somehow fell in love with these little machines. :)

This is so cool! Now I really want to find an Eee PC and put ...

2026-09-16T19:42:59Z

In reply to nevent1q…synp
_________________________

This is so cool! Now I really want to find an Eee PC and put Slackware or NetBSD on it. :)

GEFS on OpenBSD, a very early preview. Ori Bernstein is porting ...

2026-09-16T01:39:38Z

GEFS on OpenBSD, a very early preview.

Ori Bernstein is porting GEFS, the crash-safe, snapshotting, copy-on-write filesystem originally written for 9front, to OpenBSD.

https://marc.info/?l=openbsd-tech&m=178948744271633&w=2

#openbsd #bsd

Ref: https://mastodon.bsd.cafe/@lex0de/117260305094274544 This is ...

2026-09-14T01:19:04Z

Ref: https://mastodon.bsd.cafe/@lex0de/117260305094274544

This is exactly the kind of project I like to see: small, focused, terminal-first, and portable across Unix-like systems. Nice work!

Don't worry 🙂 For a first Slackware install, we generally ...

2026-09-11T01:10:04Z

In reply to nevent1q…pmzv
_________________________

Don't worry 🙂 For a first Slackware install, we generally recommend a full install, so most dependencies are already there.

CC: Mark (npub1wy2…hy0n)

yeah :)

2026-09-09T19:40:09Z

In reply to nevent1q…rp50
_________________________

yeah :)

Thanks, Mark! @npub170a…rgyu I'd start with Slackware 15.0 ...

2026-09-09T14:34:35Z

In reply to nevent1q…tqz7
_________________________

Thanks, Mark!
Marcus Rohrmoser 🌻 (npub170a…rgyu) I'd start with Slackware 15.0 for your first install. Once you're comfortable with it, moving to -current is easy. The T460 should be a great Slackware machine. :)

CC: Marcus Rohrmoser 🌻 (npub170a…rgyu)

I'm thinking about packaging the eh editor for NetBSD/pkgsrc. ...

2026-09-09T02:34:03Z

In reply to nevent1q…y8jj
_________________________

I'm thinking about packaging the eh editor for NetBSD/pkgsrc. It would be a nice way to get more familiar with pkgsrc and contribute something back.

I understand your point. For me, the interest is in the code and ...

2026-09-09T01:02:00Z

In reply to nevent1q…5mm5
_________________________

I understand your point. For me, the interest is in the code and the technical direction, not in endorsing anyone's personal views.

I’m mostly interested in the technical side of XLibre and ...

2026-09-09T00:44:03Z

In reply to nevent1q…spar
_________________________

I’m mostly interested in the technical side of XLibre and keeping X11 moving forward.

Today's desktop. Looks old-school, but under the hood: ...

2026-09-08T23:28:16Z

Today's desktop.

Looks old-school, but under the hood:
Slackware-current
Linux 7.2.4
glibc 2.44
cwm + XLibre

Without fetch (slackfetch), you probably wouldn't guess. :)

Wallpaper inspired by the geometric graphic design of Yusaku Kamekura.

#Slackware #cwm #X11 #unixporn

16.0 will be a nice milestone. Then I'll point slackpkg back ...

2026-09-08T17:06:47Z

In reply to nevent1q…ddf3
_________________________

16.0 will be a nice milestone. Then I'll point slackpkg back to -current and keep rolling. :)

First Slackware install and straight to -current on a ThinkPad, ...

2026-09-08T14:08:47Z

In reply to nevent1q…elg4
_________________________

First Slackware install and straight to -current on a ThinkPad, that's the spirit! 😄 Welcome aboard.

Building it from source really does take a long time, especially ...

2026-09-07T17:10:36Z

In reply to nevent1q…xcce
_________________________

Building it from source really does take a long time, especially in a VM. :) I prefer use chroot environment.

We're chirping for a reason 🤣 I just upgraded all three of ...

2026-09-06T17:29:27Z

In reply to nevent1q…9v7t
_________________________

We're chirping for a reason 🤣

I just upgraded all three of my Slackware -current machines. On one I simply used upgradepkg */*.txz, on another the usual slackpkg update && slackpkg upgrade-all. Reboot, a few sanity checks, and back to work. Kernel, glibc, GCC, binutils, XLibre... everything just worked.

That's part of the fun of Slackware: even a big -current update is still boring in the best possible way.

Now let's keep checking those mirrors for 16.0 🥳

I sometimes wonder why not everyone sees this as one of ...

2026-09-06T17:23:31Z

In reply to nevent1q…eeac
_________________________

I sometimes wonder why not everyone sees this as one of Slackware's biggest strengths.

installpkg, removepkg and upgradepkg are simple shell scripts that you can actually read and understand. SlackBuilds are just shell scripts too. Then you have SlackBuilds.org: you can use something like sbopkg, build things manually, or do what I do and maintain your own repository with selected packages based on SBo, sometimes using different versions.

There's a lot of flexibility there without adding layers of complexity or sacrificing the stability of the base system. That's one of the things I appreciate most about Slackware.

eh 1.8.0 is out! Improved UTF-8 editing, word motion and ...

2026-09-06T03:22:43Z

eh 1.8.0 is out!

Improved UTF-8 editing, word motion and flipcase, arrow-key navigation in insert mode, new +/- and CTRL+L commands, better buffer growth, and expanded tests.

I’ve been an nvi user for years, but eh has become my primary editor. If you like small terminal editors, give it a try and share your feedback with the project!

Thanks to Anthony @sirwumpus for creating and maintaining eh.
https://codeberg.org/SirWumpus/eh

#eh #vi

A huge Slackware-current update just landed: 1927 updates, ...

2026-09-05T06:13:00Z

A huge Slackware-current update just landed: 1927 updates, including 1876 rebuilt packages.

The entire distribution was rebuilt with GCC 16.2.0, glibc 2.44 and binutils 2.47.

And after someone asked for an ALPHA label, Patrick replied:

"Fine, it's 16.0 alpha 1."

Time to upgrade.

https://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/slackware-14/latest-changelog-for-slackware-current-4175698890/page192.html#post6647863

#Slackware #Linux

Fastpotify is a native Spotify client written in Rust, fast, ...

2026-09-02T17:27:36Z

Fastpotify is a native Spotify client written in Rust, fast, lightweight, and no browser engine.

And the best part? A Winamp mini player with support for classic .wsz skins. I absolutely love this idea.

Modern Spotify, old-school Winamp.

I already made a SlackBuild for it, waiting for approval. :)

https://github.com/crmne/fastpotify
#slackware

Nostr event nevent1qqsxltkfptu6aq9nfccw2j5w794f35t28v9ra0upda5p3lsqtak0etszyrm68p2ekl4yul7m2wddh3kdg86h9qts0zz3glz00a0lfnwzla03gq2qhvd

2026-08-25T08:26:39Z

Happy 35th birthday Linux!

Good Sunday reading: ...

2026-08-23T15:32:59Z

Good Sunday reading:

https://lobste.rs/s/a23bk3/netbsd_my_life_2005

A great real-world story from 2005 about NetBSD, reliability, and how keeping infrastructure simple can make a real difference.

One story among thousands from that era, I imagine. It also makes me wonder how we ended up adding so much complexity to infrastructure over the last 15 years to solve many problems that aren't exactly new.

#bsd #netbsd

Xorg/XLibre ServerFlags worth knowing: Option "DontZap" ...

2026-08-19T16:38:44Z

Xorg/XLibre ServerFlags worth knowing:

Option "DontZap" "True" prevents Ctrl+Alt+Backspace from
terminating X.

Option "DontVTSwitch" "True" prevents switching to another virtual
terminal, but removes an important recovery path.

For most personal systems, DontZap alone is the balanced choice.

DontVTSwitch may make sense for kiosks or systems with stricter
physical-access requirements.

More details:
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/r1w1s1/code-notes/refs/heads/master/notes/X11_ServerFlags.txt

#slackware #x11 #xlibre #xorg

Xorg/XLibre ServerFlags worth knowing: Option "DontZap" ...

2026-08-19T14:41:54Z

Xorg/XLibre ServerFlags worth knowing:

Option "DontZap" "True" prevents Ctrl+Alt+Backspace from
terminating X.

Option "DontVTSwitch" "True" prevents switching to another virtual
terminal, but removes an important recovery path.

For most personal systems, DontZap alone is the balanced choice.
DontVTSwitch may make sense for kiosks or systems with stricter
physical-access requirements.

More details:
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/r1w1s1/code-notes/refs/heads/master/notes/X11_ServerFlags.txt

#slackware #x11 #xlibre

Thanks! Please do post it when you’re ready. I’d love to add ...

2026-08-18T14:01:31Z

In reply to nevent1q…3msv
_________________________

Thanks! Please do post it when you’re ready. I’d love to add more OpenBSD/cwm setups to the showcase :)

Nice cwm find. I’ve been putting together a small, curated CWM ...

2026-08-18T03:09:31Z

In reply to nevent1q…w423
_________________________

Nice cwm find. I’ve been putting together a small, curated CWM desktop showcase for interesting setups and ideas:

https://github.com/r1w1s1/cwm-config/blob/master/screenshots/README.md

yeah I'm using only this one now :) CC: @npub1lym…fqe3

2026-08-14T16:37:11Z

In reply to nevent1q…yhuu
_________________________

yeah I'm using only this one now :)

CC: Tomáš (npub1lym…fqe3)

Thanks for the tip! I enabled the Digit0Dotted variant in ...

2026-08-13T14:46:31Z

In reply to nevent1q…7h2v
_________________________

Thanks for the tip! I enabled the Digit0Dotted variant in VARIANTS.dat and rebuilt the font.

Thanks to @npub1lym…fqe3 blog, I discovered UW ttyp0, a ...

2026-08-13T05:27:33Z

Thanks to Tomáš (npub1lym…fqe3) blog, I discovered UW ttyp0, a beautiful bitmap font for X11 and Unix consoles. I'm already using it with cwm, dmenu, xterm, and tabbed.

I'm also preparing a SlackBuild for SlackBuilds.org, hopefully available next week.

https://nein.triapul.cz/fonts

#slackware #font #uwttyp0 #slackfetch

the blog feature is really nice! I really like the whole idea.

2026-08-12T16:25:41Z

In reply to nevent1q…d9an
_________________________

the blog feature is really nice! I really like the whole idea.

Always nice to see slackfetch running on another Slackware box! ...

2026-08-09T15:18:55Z

In reply to nevent1q…23d5
_________________________

Always nice to see slackfetch running on another Slackware box! 😄 Thanks for using it!

Finding out what a program is doing on Linux often means ...

2026-08-06T18:51:33Z

Finding out what a program is doing on Linux often means remembering several ps options and piping the result through grep.

With px, it can be as simple as:./px -t cwm PID USER %CPU VSZ RSS START ELAPSED CPUTIME COMMAND 15077 r1w1s1 0.0 64M 9.1M 10:16 5h33m 0:00 /usr/bin/cwm 

The -t option displays threads as well, making it easy to see which one is using CPU and how long the process has been running.px

does not try to replace ps, top, or htop. It focuses on one common daily task: finding a process quickly and getting useful information without memorizing complex options or using grep.px firefox px -f "python app" px 11690 px -t firefox 

Small, direct, and very useful for everyday terminal work.

Project:
https://github.com/leahneukirchen/px

#ThursdayTips #Linux #Unix #CLI #OpenSource

I've put together a dedicated page for SonicDE on Slackware. ...

2026-08-05T17:55:12Z

I've put together a dedicated page for SonicDE on Slackware.

It includes installation instructions, SlackBuilds, package status, and project documentation.

If you're interested in trying SonicDE on Slackware, have a look:

https://sonicde-slackware.github.io/

Feedback, testing, and contributions are always appreciated.

#slackware #sonicde

I'm on Slackware + cwm as well. It's a great combination ...

2026-08-03T02:38:29Z

In reply to nevent1q…egh3
_________________________

I'm on Slackware + cwm as well. It's a great combination if you enjoy simple, predictable Unix workflows. I use sxhkd, xterm, tmux, dmenu, and nvi around it.

My configuration is here if anyone is interested:
https://github.com/r1w1s1/cwm-config

CC: Dragon of BSDCafe (=> snac.bsd.cafe) (npub1zry…q8uq)

After a few months of work, slackfetch has reached a mature 1.0 ...

2026-07-30T21:08:37Z

After a few months of work, slackfetch has reached a mature 1.0 release.

A minimal and readable system information utility for Slackware, inspired by ufetch.
The normal output and a cowsay -n composition are shown below.

https://forge.slackware.nl/r1w1s1/slackfetch

#Slackware #Linux #Unix

19 June 1984. Bob Scheifler announces the first release of the X ...

2026-06-19T20:31:58Z

19 June 1984.

Bob Scheifler announces the first release of the X Window System:

"I stole a fair amount of code from W ... and called it X."

Forty-two years later, I'm still running X11 daily on Slackware.

Happy Birthday, X.

Source: https://www.talisman.org/x-debut.shtml

#X11 #Unix #Linux #Slackware #XLibre

I know that feeling. 🙂 For me, the tagging model is the ...

2026-06-17T20:59:52Z

In reply to nevent1q…gun7
_________________________

I know that feeling. 🙂

For me, the tagging model is the hardest thing to give up. Once you get used to it, traditional workspaces feel surprisingly limiting.

Are you familiar with dwm's powerful tag feature? THE TAGGING ...

2026-06-17T00:48:53Z

Are you familiar with dwm's powerful tag feature?
THE TAGGING MODEL
Many desktop environments organize windows using rigid workspaces: Workspace 1 Workspace 2 Workspace 3 
A window belongs to a single workspace.
dwm uses a different model, treating workspaces as bitmask labels (tags).
This allows a single window instance to hold multiple tags simultaneously,
acting as a persistent visual anchor across different contexts: Firefox -> Tag 1 (Web Browsing) st (nvi/dev) -> Tag 2 (Code/Scripts) st (Monitor/Logs) -> Tag 1 + Tag 2 (Persistent) 
When you view Tag 1, you see your browser and the log monitor. When you
switch to Tag 2, the browser disappears, but the exact same log window
remains on screen, now sharing space with your text editor.
The application is never duplicated or restarted in memory.
The UI remains minimal while enabling workflows that are difficult to
express using traditional workspace-oriented desktops.
Two decades later, this tagging model remains one of the most
distinctive features of dwm.

#suckless #dwm #unix #linux #sysadmin

nice!!! I'm running on Thinkpad x220.

2026-06-16T17:26:43Z

In reply to nevent1q…a0gh
_________________________

nice!!! I'm running on Thinkpad x220.

Plasma 6 has officially landed in Slackware-current. After years ...

2026-06-16T08:37:24Z

Plasma 6 has officially landed in Slackware-current.

After years of community testing and development, Plasma 6 is now part of the official Slackware-current tree alongside the ffmpeg8 transition. Many thanks to Patrick Volkerding, alienBOB, LuckyCyborg, and everyone who contributed code, packaging, testing, and bug reports along the way.

Mon Jun 15 23:27:31 UTC 2026
Well folks, it seems that the stars have aligned to bring us a bunch of long-
awaited updates, including ffmpeg8 and Plasma 6! This has been developed in a
side tree for several weeks, and I'll be happy to get that off my plate and
have a greatly reduced todo list. Many thanks to alienBOB for getting the tree
in good shape, helping when I got stuck, and for being a good manager who
inspires me to do my best work. 🙂 And we both extend our thanks to the
illustrious LuckyCyborg who ported the build scripts to Plasma 6 in the first
place and then maintained Plasma 6 for Slackware users to test for a couple of
years. And thanks to everyone else who helped out with either of the Slackware
Plasma 6 projects that these updates grew out of.
Have fun!

#slackware #kde #plasma6

Plasma 6 has officially landed in Slackware-current. Mon Jun 15 ...

2026-06-16T00:41:16Z

Plasma 6 has officially landed in Slackware-current.

Mon Jun 15 23:27:31 UTC 2026
Well folks, it seems that the stars have aligned to bring us a bunch of long-
awaited updates, including ffmpeg8 and Plasma 6! This has been developed in a
side tree for several weeks, and I'll be happy to get that off my plate and
have a greatly reduced todo list. Many thanks to alienBOB for getting the tree
in good shape, helping when I got stuck, and for being a good manager who
inspires me to do my best work. 🙂 And we both extend our thanks to the
illustrious LuckyCyborg who ported the build scripts to Plasma 6 in the first
place and then maintained Plasma 6 for Slackware users to test for a couple of
years. And thanks to everyone else who helped out with either of the Slackware
Plasma 6 projects that these updates grew out of.
Have fun!

#slackware #kde6

Exactly. The composability and automation aspect is what keeps ...

2026-05-15T22:05:14Z

In reply to nevent1q…rqhe
_________________________

Exactly. The composability and automation aspect is what keeps pulling me back to the traditional UNIX environment.

The UNIX shell is still one of the best IDEs ever created. ...

2026-05-15T21:41:56Z

The UNIX shell is still one of the best IDEs ever created.

grep/find/sed/awk/make/ssh/git/nvi often compose better than many modern “integrated” environments.

Small programs connected together still scale surprisingly well.

https://repo.or.cz/code-notes.git/blob_plain/HEAD:/notes/Unix_As_An_IDE.txt

#unix #linux #slackware #vi

Fascinating firsthand perspective. It's incredible how ...

2026-05-09T02:40:25Z

In reply to nevent1q…lvxd
_________________________

Fascinating firsthand perspective.
It's incredible how constrained systems were, yet many of the ideas survived decades.

Reading an old UNIX Review article from September 1984 about ...

2026-05-08T20:01:57Z

Reading an old UNIX Review article from September 1984 about
termcap. Fascinating how much modern terminal software still
inherits ideas from this era.

vi depended heavily on terminal capability databases to remain
portable across different hardware terminals. Bill Joy originally
wired vi only for Lear Siegler ADM-3A terminals, and termcap was
born from the flood of requests for support on other hardware.

"Termcap Unveiled" by Douglas R. Merritt, pages 42-48.
https://archive.org/details/Unix_Review_1984_Sep.pdf/page/n43/mode/2up

Also updated my nvi notes with a small historical section about
termcap/curses and terminal portability.
https://repo.or.cz/code-notes.git/blob_plain/HEAD:/notes/NVI_Editor_Guide.txt

#vi #unix #termcap #nvi #linux

Spent the day exploring heirloom-ex-vi (n-t-roff). It's ...

2026-05-05T17:19:30Z

Spent the day exploring heirloom-ex-vi (n-t-roff). It's
essentially the cleaned-up 1985 ex/vi 3.7 code, brought
forward by Gunnar Ritter and Carsten Kunze: small, simple,
and very readable — about 25k LOC for the editor itself,
versus 38k for nvi. The memory footprint is lower too,
around 3MB RSS against nvi's 6MB in typical use, and it
feels snappy in daily use.

The limits are by design rather than oversight. Fixed
temp-file blocks and a line-pointer table capped at
LBLKS=900 in the default build give you about 230k lines,
or roughly 30MB of text. Beyond that, you get the classic
"Tmp file too large" — and that's fine, because a screen
editor isn't the right tool for huge files anyway.

Trade-offs worth knowing: no set ruler, single-level
undo, and a hard ceiling on file size. nvi is more
practical for daily work, especially if you live in YAML
where column awareness matters. But heirloom is closer to
the original, and the codebase is genuinely beautiful.
Worth a look.

#vi #unix #suckless #nvi

## Slackware Patches "Copy Fail" Kernel Bug — ...

2026-05-03T02:59:54Z

##

Slackware Patches "Copy Fail" Kernel Bug — CVE-2026-31431Slackware has issued a kernel security update for **CVE-2026-31431**, the [Copy Fail](https://copy.fail/ ) vulnerability disclosed April 29, 2026. It's an out-of-bounds write in the AEAD userspace crypto interface (AF_ALG) that lets any local user get a root shell via a setuid binary — the same 732-byte Python PoC works on essentially every Linux distro shipped since 2017.

**If you can't patch right away**, Slackware ships the affected code as a module (CONFIG_CRYPTO_USER_API_AEAD=m), so you can blacklist or remove it as a stopgap:echo "install algif_aead /bin/false" > /etc/modprobe.d/disable-algif.conf rmmod algif_aead 

For most systems this breaks nothing — AF_ALG is a userspace front-door to the kernel crypto API, and OpenSSL, SSH, dm-crypt, kTLS, and IPsec all bypass it.

Patch and reboot when you can. slackpkg update && slackpkg upgrade-all.

**Sources:**<li><a href="http://www.slackware.com/security/viewer.php?l=slackware-security&y=2026&m=slackware-security.1267034"; target="_blank">http://www.slackware.com/security/viewer.php?l=slackware-security&y=2026&m=slackware-security.1267034</a></li><li><a href="https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-31431"; target="_blank">https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-31431</a></li>;
#slackware #copyfail

Thanks so much for the detailed comment, lots of great tips here! ...

2026-04-29T19:31:50Z

In reply to nevent1q…al5q
_________________________

Thanks so much for the detailed comment, lots of great tips here!
The mv -T --exchange pattern for atomic GC is really elegant, I hadn't thought of using hardlinks that way. And the TCP slow-start trick with split + parallel downloads is wild :)

Just one quick clarification: the blog isn't mine, I just shared the link because I enjoyed the article. The author is Dave (ratfactor.com), and he's on Mastodon at [@ratfactor@mastodon.art](https://mastodon.art/users/ratfactor ) If you have corrections or things you'd like to see added to the article itself, reaching out to him there would be the best way.

But please keep the comments coming here, I'm learning a lot from them!

Same here — .xinitrc, no graphical login. I manage dotfiles ...

2026-04-28T23:27:30Z

In reply to nevent1q…xppa
_________________________

Same here — .xinitrc, no graphical login. I manage dotfiles manually via a Makefile: I decide which files go into my home repo and update them when I choose. More control, but drift is still very much possible 😅

Wrote a howto on ZRAM configuration for Slackware -current, ...

2026-04-27T21:57:36Z

Wrote a howto on ZRAM configuration for Slackware -current, covers compression algorithms (lz4, zstd, lzo-rle, etc), device sizing for different RAM scenarios, and monitoring. Useful if you're tweaking the defaults in /etc/default/zram.

https://docs.slackware.com/howtos:slackware_admin:zram_configuration

#Slackware #Linux #ZRAM

Sounds like “productive procrastination” to me 😄

2026-04-26T13:30:56Z

In reply to nevent1q…5txd
_________________________

Sounds like “productive procrastination” to me 😄

Yeah makes sense… some laptops are really picky with ...

2026-04-23T23:36:56Z

In reply to nevent1q…jmxf
_________________________

Yeah makes sense… some laptops are really picky with wifi/firmware.
Nice that Slackware just works out of the box for you 👍

CC: N4t3R (npub180a…e3he)

Haha, classic 😄 Slackware just works. Curious, what broke on ...

2026-04-23T18:59:46Z

In reply to nevent1q…ghdh
_________________________

Haha, classic 😄
Slackware just works.
Curious, what broke on the other ISOs?

CC: N4t3R (npub180a…e3he)

I use st but my second option and always keep installed is xterm ...

2026-04-21T21:44:26Z

In reply to nevent1q…c0kr
_________________________

I use st but my second option and always keep installed is xterm :)

CC: Justine Smithies (npub1ne6…hhrn)

nice! CC: @npub16l0…f0y2 @npub1wy2…hy0n @npub1der…t5gj

2026-04-17T12:32:20Z

In reply to nevent1q…euuj
_________________________

nice!

CC: jloc0 (npub16l0…f0y2) Mark (npub1wy2…hy0n) Döbbie03 (npub1der…t5gj)

Cheatsheet trick for tools with too many shortcuts:$ alias ...

2026-04-17T00:19:27Z

Cheatsheet trick for tools with too many shortcuts:$ alias screenhelp='cat ~/.screen-cheatsheet.txt' $ screenhelp 

One alias per tool.
No apps, no TUIs, no search.
Just cat and muscle memory.

Example:
https://git.sr.ht/~r1w1s1/code-notes/blob/main/notes/My_GNU_Screen_Setup.txt

#unix #commandline #gnu #screen

I was going to compile it this morning, but I think it’s worth ...

2026-04-16T02:59:35Z

In reply to nevent1q…63cs
_________________________

I was going to compile it this morning, but I think it’s worth waiting for testing.

CC: jloc0 (npub16l0…f0y2)

Just updated two ThinkPads to Linux 7.0! T14 Gen2 (Tiger ...

2026-04-16T02:56:10Z

Just updated two ThinkPads to Linux 7.0!

T14 Gen2 (Tiger Lake):<li>i915/Iris Xe fixes</li><li>iwlwifi/AX201 Wi-Fi 6 improvements</li><li>Thunderbolt 4 stack work</li><li>ext4 reliability improvements</li>
X220 (Sandy Bridge, 2011!):<li>i915 legacy GPU still well supported</li><li>iwlwifi fixes (Centrino Advanced-N 6205)</li><li>e1000e improvements (82579LM)</li><li>SATA/AHCI power management fixes</li>
Same kernel, 15 years apart of hardware. That's Linux.

#linux #kernel #thinkpad #x220 #t14

nice! I'm running kernel 7.0 on -current CC: @npub16l0…f0y2

2026-04-16T02:48:50Z

In reply to nevent1q…720x
_________________________

nice! I'm running kernel 7.0 on -current

CC: jloc0 (npub16l0…f0y2)

I mentioned it's experimental in my post :) The goal ...

2026-04-09T12:11:02Z

In reply to nevent1q…3frs
_________________________

I mentioned it's experimental in my post :) The goal isn't to replace Xorg today but to eventually drop it while keeping X11 apps working. DPMS is already on the 1.0 roadmap. Just sharing early findings!

Very cool indeed! Built from source on Slackware -current, all ...

2026-04-09T01:30:05Z

In reply to nevent1q…el58
_________________________

Very cool indeed! Built from source on Slackware -current, all dependencies already shipped by Patrick. dwm, st and dmenu_run worked out of the box. Still needs some tweaking but very promising for suckless users who want to drop Xorg without changing their setup!

Finally tested wayback with dwm on Slackware -current! 🎉 ...

2026-04-08T21:04:36Z

Finally tested wayback with dwm on Slackware -current! 🎉

wayback is a stub Wayland compositor that hosts a rootful Xwayland server, letting you run your full X11 setup unchanged on top of Wayland. Built from source, wrote a small launch script and dwm came up fine with st.

Still experimental and needs some tweaking but the core concept works — keep your dwm, st and all your suckless tools, just drop Xorg underneath.

If you're a minimalist X11 user not ready to jump to a Wayland WM, keep an eye on this project!

https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/wayback/wayback

#dwm #wayland #linux #suckless #slackware #xorg

I should use more ed :) I also have the book it's great! CC: ...

2026-04-07T13:48:22Z

In reply to nevent1q…qt6r
_________________________

I should use more ed :) I also have the book it's great!

CC: Like Mucas :pumpkin_ugh: (npub1ksf…r6s6) [@ed1conf@bsd.network](https://bsd.network/users/ed1conf )

SourceHut is currently under a DDoS attack affecting multiple ...

2026-04-06T17:18:25Z

SourceHut is currently under a DDoS attack affecting multiple services.

git.sr.ht is unstable, builds may have been cancelled, and chat.sr.ht is also impacted.

https://status.sr.ht/issues/2026-04-06-ddos-attack/

#sourcehut #devops #fediverse #opensource

If you really know your GNU coreutils, you probably don't ...

2026-04-03T04:06:53Z

If you really know your GNU coreutils, you probably don't need as many extra tools as you think. 🐧

KISS isn't just a design principle — it's already built into your system.

A comprehensive review of every coreutils command, with examples and honest opinions. The lobste.rs discussion is also worth reading.

Article: https://ratfactor.com/slackware/pkgblog/coreutils
Discussion: https://lobste.rs/s/xqf5ex/coreutils_comprehensive_review_2023

#linux #unix #coreutils #gnu

Great point! I’ve also written a short explanation of how the ...

2026-03-24T01:39:43Z

In reply to nevent1q…g9dv
_________________________

Great point! I’ve also written a short explanation of how the init/boot process works in Slackware and why it stays simple without systemd if anyone wants to dive deeper:

https://git.sr.ht/~r1w1s1/code-notes/tree/main/item/notes/Slackware_Init_Boot_Process.txt

#slackware

Nice deep dive into SSH keystroke obfuscation and why packet ...

2026-01-23T18:23:41Z

Nice deep dive into SSH keystroke obfuscation and why packet captures look so noisy. Learned something new here.
https://eieio.games/blog/ssh-sends-100-packets-per-keystroke/

#openssh #ssh

I’m a dwm + solid colors person, so for me this is already rice ...

2026-01-23T05:16:48Z

In reply to nevent1q…w66c
_________________________

I’m a dwm + solid colors person, so for me this is already rice 😄
Looking forward to the next tweaks.

very nice! CC: @npub1gs2…7nxx

2026-01-23T04:10:51Z

In reply to nevent1q…cqpu
_________________________

very nice!

CC: wickedlester (npub1gs2…7nxx)

Slackware isn’t about shortcuts. It’s about understanding the ...

2026-01-20T02:04:28Z

Slackware isn’t about shortcuts.
It’s about understanding the system, from boot to shell.

This video explains well why Slackware still matters.
https://youtu.be/pRp1I3OzMEY

#slackware

New hardware can be painful early on, but it’s not a rule. My ...

2026-01-19T23:12:47Z

In reply to nevent1q…k32d
_________________________

New hardware can be painful early on, but it’s not a rule.

My ThinkPad T14 is new and Linux works perfectly. Kernel + firmware maturity matters more than age.

Nice work! The notification filter is a great quality-of-life ...

2026-01-18T23:02:54Z

In reply to nevent1q…75h3
_________________________

Nice work!

The notification filter is a great quality-of-life improvement and the implementation looks clean. Thanks for taking care of the UI helper and small code style fixes too.

CC: byte::Arc<> (npub1pea…88h9)

great shot!

2026-01-18T15:12:03Z

In reply to nevent1q…jtkl
_________________________

great shot!

This really captures what I enjoy about BSD Cafe as well - a ...

2026-01-18T15:06:07Z

In reply to nevent1q…0srg
_________________________

This really captures what I enjoy about BSD Cafe as well - a relaxed mix of people, systems, and experiences. Thanks for sharing, and have a great Sunday.

CC: Stefano Marinelli (npub1ef5…gcpc)