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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
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completely blind computer geek, lover of science fiction and fantasy (especially LitRPG). I work in accessibility, but my opinions are my own, not that of my employer. Fandoms: Harry Potter, Discworld, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Buffy, Dead Like Me, Glee, and I'll read fanfic of pretty much anything that crosses over with one of those.
keyoxide: aspe:keyoxide.org:PFAQDLXSBNO7MZRNPUMWWKQ7TQ
Location
Ottawa
Birthday
1987-12-20
Pronouns
he/him (EN)
xmpp fastfinge@im.interfree.ca
keyoxide aspe:keyoxide.org:PFAQDLXSBNO7MZRNPUMWWKQ7TQ
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
@alexhall I had the same thing.
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
@oriol_gomez92 @kevinrj In my ideal world, it imports a zip file, unzips it into a folder named after the zip file, and deletes any non-audio files it finds. This would pretty much get you free daisy audio support based on how most libraries do it. Also, big zip files are how many TV show seasons come out of a large website you're probably familiar with.
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
@oriol_gomez92 @kevinrj If we could import zip files it’d be perfect.
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
@adam I know vergin rolled out IPV6, and they're just a bell reseller entirely owned by BCE. But I haven't managed to figure out how, yet.
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
@adam I got myself a heatsync I'm gonna stick on there with a thermal pad, and a little five volt fan, as I happened to have a USB plug nearbye to run it. I'm kinda worried about the heat from the PFS port causing the switch to throddle itself.
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
@adam @mrkrabs No worries! If I wanted it to be private, I’d have sent a dm. What Adam says aligns with my experience. The plug on the modem was extremely stubborn; I had to tug on it harder than I like pulling on any connector, and I had nearly resigned myself to giving up before it finally came out. Even then I was scared I had broken it. As for touching the connector, I was cowardly and had the rubber cover in my hand and ready to go. I put the cover on until I was ready to plug it into the new module.
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
@adam I was already using Ppoe pass through, so it’ll be interesting to see how much of a difference this makes. My god these are hot little bastards.
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
@adam I’m running whatever FIBERMALL put on it. It claims to be 8311 community firmware. And its web updater says it’s up to date with the latest release from 2024.
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
@adam I only have one. Do firmware updates happen often? How critical are they?
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
@adam You might be interested to know that I completely replaced the Bell Gigahub modem without any issues this morning. The process is perfectly accessible, other than needing someone to read the ONT ID off the back of your bell modem. You need a router or switch with an SFP+ port. You also need a fan or other active cooling for the fiber module; they run at about 90 degrees. Then I purchased my x-onu-sfpp from fibermall. Once you have these things, you can use these instructions: pon.wiki/guides/masquerade-as-the-bce-inc-giga-hub-with-the-was-110/#purchase-a-was-110-or-x-onu-sfpp
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
The apps are fairly with , just FYI. As is the interface for AdGuard DNS. I haven't tried VPN because I don't need that, and I don't run AdGuard home because I want to run my own DNS about as much as I want to run my own email.
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
Just for the heck of it, I decided to try to fix an addon to run in the latest alpha. I knew exactly what was wrong with it: it was importing a module included for 3.11, and new alphas of NVDA are built with Python 3.13. I gave chat GPT the addon file, with this instruction: "In the latest alphas of NVDA, NVDA is now built with Python 3.13. That means this addon won't work. Please fix it." The simple solution would be to go get the right precompiled module from pip. But I didn't know if it would even be able to figure out what a .nvda-addon file was or how to fix it. Turns out it did. It spent six minutes, unpacked the addon, did things to the python code, then gave me back a new .nvda-addon file. But instead of just getting the right version of the module, it...rewrote the entire addon to not use that module. And its rewrite included some new features, while removing some existing ones. I'm kind of both impressed that it was able to handle the entire task on its own, and baffled that it did it in the hardest possible way. It even updated the manifest file correctly. It also left commented out sections of code, and created some Python files it never wound up using for anything. You could kind of see it doing something, forgetting what it was doing, then going to do the same thing a different way, but not deleting the half-completed evidence of the first attempt it abandoned for some reason. If more and more people use AI, code is going to get really, really weird and organic, y'all.
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
@ppatel No idea. In this case it was a replacement part for a medical device. Even with the invoice they decided it was worth more than declared.
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
@ppatel Nah sorry. Customs has been hitting us with a lot of taxes and duty when US packages enter the country. Paid $79 in import fees on a $150 package from Texas a couple weeks ago. God only knows what they’d decide a bt speak is worth. The shippers declaration doesn’t seem to matter much. Thought you were in India for some reason. Sorry for wasting your time!
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
@ppatel Where would you be shipping from? I’d be interested as long as it’s not the US. Importing from the states to Canada is unaffordable now.
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
6mo
one for @FreakyFwoof and my other British followers: An American man tries to pronounce British county names like der ham and glookestershyre: www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_ZaN8HRqFs
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
7mo
If the title of this one doesn't interest you, the contents sure won't! Correcting Years With and : stuff.interfree.ca/2025/08/28/correct-years-with-nvda-and-espeak.html
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
7mo
Has anyone started a set of dictionaries for the voices yet? Now that the SAPI bugs in are fixed, I'm trying them out for a while. Problems I'm noticing: number reading is...weird. And change pitch for capitals doesn't work. Also, a set of NVDA dictionaries will be really badly needed. It's not as bad as eloquence, but I've got five entries after just a few minutes use. But these on Windows and the Siri voices on IOS could maybe, finally, perhaps, get me off eloquence.
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
7mo
I had...this in a notes file on my computer. I have no idea why, where it came from, what it is, or why it exists. It was just a random file called notes.txt hanging out a few subfolders deep in my documents. Now you can have it, too!

In the most famous episode of Lost in Space, taking on the role of the gracious host, Captain John-Boy presents the actress with a parquet silhouette of the spaceship and a receipt of her room and board, proudly boasting, "conditions are 435 per cent better!" It seems to be an impressive sales pitch until you realise that he's including a portrait of himself as part of the deal. However, this doesn't seem to deter Miss Clay, who avidly accepts.
But her excitement quickly turns to concern when she realises the ship's crew won't be as easy to win over. "You think they are going to like me?" she worriedly ponders.
"They will love you," John-Boy confidently assures her, his words almost drowned out by the sound of raucous laughter emanating from the galley. Realising that his actors will soon be subjected to the Walton's unconventional dynamic, John-Boy hesitates before opening the door.
The sight that greets him is one of playful chaos; his parents and grandparents engaged in a friendly food fight, hurling mashed potatoes and greens at each other with gleeful abandon. Recognising the challenging task ahead, Miss Clay asserts, "We'll have to teach them some manners."
John-Boy readily agrees, signalling the start of their mission to transform the lively Waltons into a more refined version of themselves.
The following scenes depict the trials and tribulations faced by Miss Clay and John-Boy as they attempt to instil etiquette into the Walton clan. Their efforts are met with varying degrees of success. Grandpa, in particular, transforms remarkably, adhering to the new rules and proudly declaring, "You can't go against Miss Clay!"
Despite their best efforts, the process is fraught with challenges. Olivia, John-Boy's mother, accidentally destroys a prized family heirloom during an ill-fated attempt at a lesson in table manners. The mishap leaves both her and John-Boy in despair, with Olivia lamenting, "I'm going to be the only mother in history who's going to lock her children in the airlock." Yet, amidst these setbacks, they remain undeterred.
The climax of their efforts arrives when Miss Clay decides to stage a 'dress rehearsal', simulating a dinner party scenario. Each family member is assigned a role, aiming to perfect their newly acquired manners under her watchful eye. However, the exercise quickly devolves into pandemonium when their dog, Reckless, wreaks havoc.
The pandemonium unfolds as Reckless chases a toy, disrupting the carefully staged dinner party. The pursuit ends with the dog crashing into the table, sending food flying and leaving the guests, including Miss Clay, covered in spaghetti. The incident appears disastrous, yet it inadvertently serves to unite the family, reminding them of their shared bond and resilience.
As they recover from the chaos, John-Boy expresses his admiration for Miss Clay, commending her perseverance and stating, "It makes me feel good that you don't care where you are as long as it's with us." His appreciation reaffirms Miss Clay's connection to the family and their mutual understanding.
In the concluding scenes, the Waltons gather to bid farewell to Miss Clay. It's a heartfelt moment filled with appreciation and respect. Despite their initial resistance to change, the family acknowledges the positive impact of her presence. They part ways with a newfound understanding, promising to maintain their refined behaviours, albeit with a Walton twist.
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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦 @fastfinge@interfree.ca
7mo
Interesting that the local network will actually continue to work pretty well if your server just...forgets to give out the DNS addresses for a couple days. Windows, IOS, OSX, Android, and Debian will all just kinda roll with it. That's not to mention annoying stuff like Firefox that refuses to use your system provided by default because it's special. But you get weird failures with anything custom (tvs, cameras, etc). So anyway, that was what I spent my evening diagnosing.