Also… the amount of money I’ve saved by being able to revive old hardware! I haven’t bought a new computer in 11 years. My computer before that (and still working) was a gift in 2006… that bitch is old enough to vote.

I have other computers that people have given to me because they were “just too old,” but for me, it was an upgrade. I revived a windows 98-era HP a few years ago, just so I could use the 9-pin connection to fix my bricked OG Xbox that I was modding.

Granted, I don’t game on PC or require heavy lifting (though I am saving for a personal build, because there’s some hobbies I just can’t do without a good desktop), but for everyday use, I have more than enough.

I currently have 4 “working” computers. Two of them are my main, one still needs to be “reinvigorated” (it’s 18 years old), and one is my server.

I have a 5th desktop that was given to me (because it was too slow/old), and it just recently crapped out on me (either because of windows bullshit, or a bad hdd. But I have my hunches). So it’s about to be revived when I have time.

Hardest part was getting my wife onboard with switching to Linux, instead of buying a new computer. But now she’s getting ready to switch her Mac to Linux because it’s been struggling. And I think she’s starting to realize that a brand-new computer isn’t really “necessary”, if all you’re doing is email, browsing web, and editing docs. Shit, our phones can handle most of that; you don’t need a $1k+ computer for that, or pay for windows software that will barely work on the hardware you have.

So yeah… end rant. Absolutely love how much Linux has breathed new life into my old hardware. Has saved me time and time again, as well as a bunch of money. I definitely need to throw a donation at a distro, cause they have saved me more than just money at this point

I just finished doing a fresh install this morning, because my wifi card wasn’t working. It honestly needed to be done anyway because I was out-of date, but the wifi card finally got me to back-up all my data and do it.

Fresh install, and wifi still won’t even toggle-on. Was about to look for manual install of the driver, and so on and so forth… and then I noticed my folly

Fucking keyboard has a toggle switch to turn the wifi off. Not the worst and glad I didn’t pull my hair out over it, but damn… felt pretty dumb this morning

I’ve been had! Welp, the cat’s already outta the bag now, so might as well tell ya the truth; I’m actually a serial-killer-cop… aka, a cop. You can run, but you’ll never be able to hide!

Edit: huffing, puffing, wheezing …ok, maybe you can actually just run a bit, no hiding necessary. I’m going on another break; I need to catch my breath

steps you’re missing

steps you’re brushing over, is what I said

You’re funny though, ngl. Go ahead and do something yourself, of the same nature. Report back with your “accomplishments”, we’re all ears. Best of luck friend

Again, still love the gumption! Though I feel like there’s probably a few steps you’re brushing over. But even if I could (theoretically) pull all of that off, idk how skimming licensing fees would ever be practical to me, especially without losing my job for a “conflict of interest”.

I’m a simple man that works slow to create change. I’d start a campaign if anything. Research and talk about viability. But if I’m putting energy into campaigning for anything; I’m campaigning for a union wayyy before I campaign for company-wide linux adoption. Help myself and coworkers first, before pursuing a personal tech-suggestion

Edit: maybe a psychotic serial-killer nurse would be better suited for that operation. That’s not really me though, I kinda really love what I do; all things considered

We use Citrix, and that’s where my knowledge really lacks (networking, in general). I feel like it could absolutely be done, but the “jankiness” of every program trying to operate smoothly, seems like a large hurdle (at least to my unknowledgable self). I just can’t see a large hospital like mine, even trying to test-run something that may cause them more headaches than they already are used to. They have enough issues navigating/operating their current systems, as is lol. You can (almost literally) see the devide between admin expectations vs. practicality.

They’re barely interested in spending money on “staff retention”, let alone any software/networking “maybe’s”. They seem to lack the foresight for “long-term” gains, vs the “short-term”. Color me surprised

I could see them asking for unreasonable function, because they don’t understand. And then blaming IT for any hiccup.

And I don’t feel like a web-based Hyperspace would be entirely viable, as we already have protocols for if/when the internet or network goes down. There are computers throughout the hospital that are specifically utilized for any “network downtime”. Maybe they could use satellite or something as a “backup network-generator”, but I’m too unknowledgable to understand how that would work or if it would even be viable. I honestly don’t fully understand how the “downtime computers” operate, so that doctors’ orders can still be made… maybe they already use satellite for those? I have no idea

But definitely doesn’t seem like a “tomatoes/tomatas” situation to me, when comparing going full linux vs switching to Libre. I was just happy to see any kind of sensibility from them on the subject

Use it to build a concentration camp for landlords, then…

Lol, I love the gumption

I unfortunately don’t work IT in any capacity (it’s a hobby of mine), and have never even seen an IT personnel from work, in person. But I also work nights as a nurse (direct patient care), so it’s not really in my “scope of practice” to have much of a say. But one can still dream

I ended up getting a CCA CRA pair, and they’re surprisingly good too. Currently $22 for a pair with a mic. It was either those, or MOONDROP, but I think either of them would be well worth the 20 bucks

I think it really could be, if administration could understand the limitations of the IT side. And/or the corporate/entity cared to spend the money to make it happen (Like re-hiring the IT department so that everyone was on the same page).

I wish it could, but even I wouldn’t think that it would be financially efficient to try and “fix” what already works. And Epic is just one of the critical programs… there’s a lot of in-between.

If it were my hospital to run; I’d wanna test-run linux desktop in some capacity, because I bet it could be made to work better/cheaper. But it’s one of the most extensive hospitals in the state, with a LOT of everyone around using their services in some capacity. I can’t imagine them shelling out the extra capital to “decide” if there would be “long-term gains”. It’s not financially smart “short-term”, even if financially better "long-term.

But switching to Libre Office? I was surprised. Maybe one day we’ll get there

I really appreciate the heads up! But I actually pretty much want them for the “situational awareness”. I feel like I understand the expectations for audio quality. I’m not very much an audiophile, especially for what I’m trying to get out of them.

I work in a pretty quiet environment that only gets really noisy if there’s a situation that needs to be handled. So I wanna be able to hear the alarms and would be pausing my podcast/whatever if I need to respond. And I also like the way it seems to fit and stay in place. It seems like a great fit for what I’m after, I just hope I’m not unlucky enough to be too sensitive to the vibrations. I kinda doubt it would be an issue, but that’s my (small) main concern… would I stop using them 6 months later because I can’t get used to it

Should I get the “pro” version for better quality, or stay away because it could be too much bass/vibration (even at lower volume)

But I’ve seen a few people at work with them, and they love them… and a few others have tried, but can’t deal with the vibrations

So I’ve been torn. I’m probably gonna try them cause they check almost every box for what I’m looking for. But should I get the pro version? Would it be too much? Idk, and I could maybe try them from a co-worker, but I feel like I would have to spend time with them before knowing what I like. Just kinda wanna buy the right kind, if I’ma throw the money at it

Or I could probably ask someone who works there to mute it for me, and it would be a non-issue (especially if it’s just me in the waiting area)

But I’ll just skip the middle man and mute it myself. And then unmute it when I leave or someone else walks in. It quite literally harms nobody and nobody has ever cared. If they did, I’m sure they would tell me and I would remember to bring earbuds/earplugs next time.

I think it’s more convenient for everyone, both me and the employee. I don’t have to bother them with something trivial, I’m not bothering anyone else. Quite literally a non-issue if you’re not being a malicious little asshat

Probably not honestly, but switching to Libre Office was probably relatively easy and saves way more than it cost to pay IT to get it running on the network.

But switching the desktop environment for the entire hospital system, I could see being costly (in labor costs). Plus, I’m not sure that the EMR (Epic) would play nice, or any of the other various critical programs they use. Definitely a much different (and probably difficult) task to pull off smoothly, compared to switching Office for Libre

And still like only $20 for ones with the ability to replace a broken wire

I really wish earbuds would stay in for me. But anything other than sitting down and listening, and they start slipping. I’ve tried so many different shapes/sized ones, but it’s the same problem. At least if my wireless slip, it’s still hooked around my ear

And I literally just started looking at some Shockz headphones the other day! Will probably try them out, I just hope it doesn’t make my head feel uncomfortable or cause headaches/vertigo. I doubt it, but they’re a little pricier than my wired ones, and it would suck if I ended up not liking them after a while

Exactly how I bought mine. Only pair I could find in my house were insufferably cheap and hurt to use. Realized I could get a very decent wired pair for like $20. Love those things now

I use both wireless and wired, depending on what I’m doing. The earbuds fall out when I’m exercising, but have better call-quality because of the noise canceling.

And I use wired for chatting, when playing games with friends on playstation. And I still have an ipod I use occasionally… so I just kinda have both.

I prefer to have a headphone jack on my phone, but I have a dongle adapter for usb-c, if I want to use my wired ones. I would just prefer not to use the adapter if I didn’t need to, because I’ve already had issues with my phone’s charging port trying to crap-out on me. The charging port isn’t as robust, and you do lose some quality with the dongle. I deal with it just fine; but a headphone jack on a phone might tip me towards purchasing that one, if I were looking to buy a new phone. It depends for me, but it’s not the end of the world, just an inconvenience that could easily be avoided

I use mine all the time. Lobby’s, waiting rooms, restaurants, bars… it’s really nice to have it available. Especially when it’s just me, waiting in the doctor’s office, and I don’t wanna hear or watch whatever is on. I can just mute it and enjoy the silence, or change the channel. It’s not like I’m bothering anyone else anyway, I just don’t wanna listen to a Fox News opinion piece at a loud volume, if ain’t nobody else is watching either

I work in a very large hospital. I left for 3 years and just came back. When I went to open a document at work, it opened in Libre Office. I was pretty surprised that they ditched Microsoft Office for Libre. Makes financial sense to me, especially because most of our use-cases are simply opening and reading a document or slideshow. But I was still surprised they made that switch, and I doubt half of the employees honestly even notice that much

Now, they still run Windows Desktops, and I doubt that would ever switch in my lifetime. So no linux for us. But still pleasantly surprised at the step forward

Makes me think of System of a Down’s, “Steal This Album”

That’s exactly how they taught us in nursing school. If you try and hide the mistake by “scratching” it out, it’s assumed that you’re hiding something. A single strike thru with an initial; owning your mistake. Mistakes are expected, and so is being honest about it. Makes you think twice before writing anything half-assed

Granted, most of us don’t do paper-charting anymore; but the EMR still tracks any addendum. Don’t go writing bullshit that you’re unable to explain