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One thing that I actually do like about using an iPad with a mouse is the spell check.

PC’s typically follow the model of right click → menu → suggestions or right click → suggestions on top of the context menu. Where the particulars of everything are application specific and very non portable, usually.

My iPad? Click the word → just give the suggestions and make you click again for the menu. Subsequent clicks toggle between spell check suggestions and the menu. Android usually just opens a context menu when you click the word, and keeps text selection different from spell checking. +/- some OEMs like to disable that by default (and Samsung used to remove the feature, way back when), iOS and Android mostly make it the OS’s job for text input things.

HDMI extension and switching time

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Well, it’s taken about six years, but I think I’ve finally found something the first generation Chromecast is good at, aside from demonstrating the meaning of choking hazard. They came with these little extension cables, so that you could put a bit of distance between your display’s HDMI port and the device itself versus shoving the Chromecast G1 into your TV.

Simply put, my old Asus monitor only has two real problems. One is the speakers are utterly and completely crap—that audio should never and under no circumstances have audio routed through them. Thankfully, Asus put a 3.5 mm port that let’s me hook up external speakers to handle the HDMI audio input. The other problem that is less easily solved: is there is only one HDMI port. It’s from an era where even a nice monitor only had one if any. Thus with my conversion to HDMI all the things around 2013~2014 thereabouts, It has been the real sticking point.

To swap cables: I’ve got to either blind man finger for the port until the HDMI goes in, or flip the monitor forward so I can get a visual on the port. Yeah, my top request for HDMI 3.0 is going to be a reversible connector like USB-C.

Today I did a bit of experiment. I connected my old HDMI switch, so I could check if my 780GTX or iPad took offense to it. At least under Linux, I’ve not been able to use Skylake or Braswell graphics with the switch, so it’s mostly been underutilized since my Xbox and Fire TV went to different displays. Much to my happiness, the GTX doesn’t care about the switch and my iPad Pro 11 -> HooToo adapter setup doesn’t seem to mind; although I didn’t test HDCP on either, I doubt that’s an issue here.

As a follow up, I decided to test if doing a hotplug from the iPad end would be smart enough to trigger the switches input auto switch behavior and it is not. Since the Chromecast G1 extension cable makes it easier to swap cables on my Asus monitor, I think what I will do is just toggle cables and spare myself wiring up yet another thing with an idiot light.

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How to know it’s time to take a break:

  1. You’ve cleared out a post apocalyptic city full of daemons.
  2. You’ve defeated the villain’s pet three headed, fire breathing dog.
  3. You’ve defeated the villain’s Astral ally, with some help from your own.
  4. The game crashes before the post battle auto checkpoint save.
Yep.
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Watching Christmas Vacation for the first time in some years, I think the real problem is less that Griswold’s luck is like a suburban dad version of Ashley Williams, and has more to do with his foolishness. But there in lays the rub.

In a way, Clark Griswold kind of represents the foolishness in us all, parodied to National Lampoon levels. He’s pretty much hopeless, and nothing he tries to do for his family goes according to plan, but they love him just the same. Somehow.

Most people can probably identify with how that works out, and be glad that most of us space out our foolishness enough not to have a reserved spot on the other side of the nut house, or encounter SWAT teams that often in our happy endings. Oddly, the characters work really well, lol.

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Final signs that the tablet has won:

  1. Posting from my desk usually means my tablet is between my keyboard, and monitor, and the keyboard is paired to the monitor.
  2. If it doesn’t involve video playback, Direct3D games, or compling code, I’m probably going to use my tablet when I’m at my desk more than my desktop.
  3. The urge to hook up my HDMI switch again, so that I can share the monitor with my tablet.
Yes, I’m weird.

Breffo Spiderpodiums as an Xbox controller caddy and headphone stand

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The Breffo Spiderpodium was originally made with holding an iPhone in mind, but I have to admit that it works pretty good as an Xbox controller caddy.

Two middle legs are folded to create stand, two back legs to lip over the controller, and two front legs are folded to make a sort of rest by the accessory port. So I can pretty much tilt the controller about ten degrees downward, slide it into place, and relax.

The larger model originally designed for the iPad, also works pretty neatly as a headphones holder. Hehe.

Plus whatever Breffo’s definition of British steel or whatever the interior is made out of, I’ve never actually managed to break one of these things. The most damage I’ve ever done is melting the plastic a bit by hanging one out of my car’s air vents for a lustrum or more.

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Check out what I’m watching on Crunchyroll! http://www.crunchyroll.com/oresuki-are-you-the-only-one-who-loves-me/episode-7-i-discover-an-unexpected-side-790234

This episode especially made me laugh, in a pretty steady symmetrical fashion. Perhaps helps that the jokes with Sun-Chan just made me cackle louder. Their trip to the pool is just filled with reasons to laugh, while somehow maintaining the pseudo-serious tone of the series; it really worked for my funny bone.

Oresuki is probably worth watching for the twisted-characters and wise cracks about rom-coms, but this episode is just worth watching, period.