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Stardate: 20240705.1541
Location: Capital One Cafe
Input Device: Steam Deck with folding BT keyboard + Xreal glasses
Audio: Capital One muzak
Visual: CoolRetroTerm with transparent display...seeing pedestrians
since I am seated by the window.
Emotional: ah's all cybah 'n shit
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Yes, it has been some time since the last time I phlog'd. Yes, I
went through some shit, and that has come to pass, so I am where I am
at now, which is writing this phost. I have basically gone
non-participatory and have not had much desire to plug in. It wasn't
any kind of conscious decision I made, it was just something that
just happened. I just stopped. The time I would usually spend doing
my online activities were replaced with more analog activities and
connecting with people in meatspace...to an extent. I am still
hyper-sensitive to getting easily flooded by being around too much
stimuli, but I have found some tools (not weapons) to help me keep it
on the m0ar manageable side.
Geekin' out is still part of what I do, but very low-key. No real
projects or anything, just tinkering around. The video games I play
are mostly offline/single player. Still fun, but I try not to play
too much. I know how I can end up living in that space for too long.
Work has been non-existent. I have not been looking since I lost my
last job. Currently a non-issue for now, but could be potentially
damaging in the future. Much of the working hours are spent doing
volunteer work helping others. It feels so much more fulfilling than
any job ever has, but unfortunately, it does not pay legal tender.
New music creation has not been on the radar lately. I think the
capacity is there, just kinda dormant and not quite ready for
expression. I still continue to practice daily and try to learn new
songs when I get inspired. But they are not my own creation and
usually just tied to some memory of the past...ain't nothin' wrong
wid dat.
I am still writing/journaling quite a bit, but I have hot been
posting anything. Most of my thoughts these days seem a bit
irrelevant...well, what I would think of irrelevant to most people,
but what do I know. Anyhow, I have made my writing terminal a bit
m0ar elaborate...a number of upgrades. I have basically taken my
Steam Deck and added a folding bluetooth keyboard, bluetooth mouse,
and wired face-mounted display. It is a bit much, but I really find
myself enjoying this current configuration.
I had picked up the Steam Deck awhile back when I decided to turn my
old Steam Box (Alienware Alpha R1) into a Linux workstation. I did
not want to do both gaming and workstation stuff on the same
computer, so I separated the tasks into 2 machines. The Steam Deck
seems to scratch that gaming itch, but I find myself doing m0ar
terminal-based stuff on this device. That seems to be the trend
with a lot of the hardware I've used over the years. If I can run
stuff in a terminal and make it work for me, I will default to
that...just run things lean.
The cybah rig that I have prevously phosted [1] about has basically
been pushed into the archives. I don't think that I will be making
any further iterations of that device. It still works and all, but
each time I "upgrade" it, I am not so thrilled with using it. The
face-mounted display is way too old school and pixelated compared to
the hardware of now.
The face-mounted display I am using now is the Xreal/Nreal Air. It
connects directly to the Steam Deck via USB-C cable, which also
powers the display. The display glasses are not cumbersome at all
and are basically what I had hoped my previous displays to be. The
ones I've used in the past were a pain to set up and had a lot of
cables/equipment attached to it. I could stand using it every now
and then, but I think I would spend m0ar time fussing with it and
being frustrated with it instead of using it. The Xreal Air glasses
are so much m0ar bettar! The displays, the resolution, the audio,
the design, pretty much all of it is a big upgrade from the devices
of the past. It is much m0ar portable and easier to set up/stow
away.
The glasses basically look like black sunglasses with a cable
sticking out of it. They are much more discreet than the cumbersome
looking goggles like the VR setups I see out there these days. I am
not so interested in those devices, especially with my experience
with the previous displays. Adding more features, like head tracking
or special controllers would just add to the frustration for me.
Plus, I get nauseous if I wear any face-mounted display for too long,
even if there is no movement. Vomitting in an expensive VR helmet is
not on my list of things to do.
One of the things that I like about the Air glasses is that I can
take off the "immersion" lense cover/blinder and see behind my
screen. Right now, I am seated by the window in the cafe and it is
mid-afternoon. I have Cool Retro Term running full screen for this
phost and I can look out of the window and see the pedestrians walk
by behind my terminal, like having a tranparent background for my
desktop/terminal, except that the background is meatspace, which is
rad! Since it is bright outside, it is easy to see the background.
The text gets washed out, so I look back at the table. Since I
can touch-type, I can stare out the window and still type and enjoy
the animated transparent background of meatspace ;)
"The gurlz in their summer clothes pass me by..."
There's probably some application of augmented reality that this
could be used for, but I have not ventured into that subject yet.
Not ready to go mobile or anything like that right now. Even going
to a cafe with this setup took some courage...I wasn't sure if it
would seem too strange. I have taken older devices out in public
before and it felt strange with weird stares. This round, it seems
much m0ar discreet and I haven't seen any weird stares.
Another thing I like are the speakers built into the arms of the
glasses. This makes it convenient and I don't need to bring a pair
of headphones unless I need better audio or privacy. My previous
Olympus FMD had earbuds attached to to the arms of the glasses that
you could put in your ears, which were cool too, but the thin wires
deteriorated over time.
The glasses came in a zippered case that is like an oversized eye
glasses case, which can store the glasses, cable, cleaning cloth and
glasses cover and make it easy to transport. I just throw this,
the Steam Deck, mouse, and keyboard in a bag and go.
The keyboard I am using is a bluetooth folding keyboard made by a
company called, "Royal Kludge." Interesting name. Model RK-F68.
This one is probably one of the most comfortable portable folding
keyboards that I have typed on for portable journaling/phlogging. I
have used many over the years, going back to the Palm PDA days and I
am really enjoying this current iteration of this kind of device. It
has mechanical keys and can be backlit. You can turn it off if you
want to save power. It can also be plugged in via the included USB
cable if you don't wanna use it via blootoof...and when the internal
battery goes bad, which will eventually happen.
The keyboard folds in half with the hinge horizontal to the keyboard.
All of the other folding keyboards in the past, the hinge was
veritical. This was a problem when you wanted to type with the
folding keyboard in your lap. The keyboard would not be stable and
would fold up, unless you had a book or something to keep it stable.
With the hinge being horizontal, it sits just fine in my lap
without folding up. It also has some weight to it that the other
past keyboards lacked, which makes it feel more sturdy and helps it
stay in place.
There is also a phone stand built in, which I have yet to use. It is
meant for thin phones or maybe a small tablet and could be convenient
if I used that kind of device.
The only thing I have found so far that I do not like about this
keyboard is the fact that it folds with the keys on the outside.
Even though it came with a soft cloth case, I still worry about it
getting damaged if I put it in my bag. It would have been better to
have more rigid material for the case. I would have paid m0ar money
for that. I will probably try to find a better one or make a more
protective case.
I think I have rambled on too long. Time to disco and do something
else.
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