Jump to content

Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2020 October 21

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Computing desk
< October 20 << Sep | October | Nov >> October 22 >
Welcome to the Wikipedia Computing Reference Desk Archives
The page you are currently viewing is a transcluded archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages.


October 21

[edit]

Unable to edit software version

[edit]

I am trying to update the software version of Mactracker. How can I update 7.8.2 to 7.9.6 and 4.3 to 4.5? --2001:B07:6442:8903:4065:C0EC:FD03:DD43 (talk) 10:42, 21 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Fedora Linux constant hang-ups, end of journalctl log

[edit]

And continuing from my previous postings, here is the end of the journalctl -b -1 log: https://pastebin.com/q1unWeRd

It appears it ends with problems in the Tracker service and complaints from the LogiTech mouse driver about my system being too slow. That's where the log ends. (I have removed all the path names relating to my personal home directory, although I seriously doubt anyone would be able to access them.)

Can anyone figure out what is causing the hang-ups? JIP | Talk 19:26, 21 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]

JIP, it seems to be just General Slow System problems. Some things to check would be: Do you have enough swap space compared to RAM? Do you have enough memory for all the processes you're running, and does any one process eat enormous amounts (Web browser, VirtualBox, CAD applications)? Are processes currently eating CPU when they shouldn't? (All the prior questions can be answered well with top and free.) Elizium23 (talk) 19:49, 21 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]
There are two processes that are generally at the top of the list when I run System Monitor: Mozilla Firefox and Cinnamon. I prefer using Cinnamon to the Gnome Shell because Cinnamon presents me with a desktop I can actually use, instead of going through endless clicking on buttons and menus just to open a terminal like in Gnome Shell. If there is another desktop environment available that presents me with a traditional desktop but doesn't eat so much resources, I'd be glad to know JIP | Talk 19:56, 21 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]
xfce — Preceding unsigned comment added by 97.82.165.112 (talk) 20:48, 21 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]
I have plenty of programs named "gSomething" where the "g" stands for "GNOME" installed. Will they work under xfce? How does one go about installing xfce anyway? JIP | Talk 20:52, 21 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]
sudo dnf groupinstall -y "Xfce Desktop"
After install, select xfce from the login window. You won't lose your old desktop so you can go back if you want. I run many gnome and kde programs in xfce. The menu bar is easy to configure. Mine is at the bottom of the screen, start button on the left, systray and clock on the right. I don't use desktop icons, so they are all off. I have multiple screens, so I have a customized menu bar at the bottom of each screen. I have shortcut buttons next to the start button for programs I run a lot. All in all, it is easy to customize and uses very little computing for the desktop. It won't make bloated programs you run any better. That isn't its job. 97.82.165.112 (talk) 10:49, 22 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]
I have just installed Xfce but haven't tried it out yet. Installing Xfce was a breeze, I just had to type the dnf command and it took care of the rest. That's the beauty of Linux, with Windows I would have had to download it from a separate site manually. JIP | Talk 21:44, 22 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]
Yes, not everyone realizes the freedom of choice afforded by Linux. Not only can you choose from dozens of distributions, each with its own value-adds, but you can swap desktop environments at the drop of a hat, between every login. Some are complex and infinitely configurable and some are simple and clean. It's very elegant, IMHO. Elizium23 (talk) 22:52, 22 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]

.sea files

[edit]

How to open .sea files? I've been trying to open one but it's not working. It's apparently a self-extracting archive and it should uncompress on its own when opened, but doesn't. Stuffit doesn't seem to work, says it's an unknown format. By the way, the file is for GayBlade (I know it's playable on the Internet Archive, but I prefer having stuff on my computer if possible), OS is Windows 10. Thanks. An 'UNDERCOVER' agent (talk) 21:10, 21 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]

That is a (very very) archaic Macintosh self-extracting archive format from the mid-to-late '90s. Extracting it on anything but a period Mac (or suitable emulator) is likely to be difficult to impossible. It uses the old Apple resource fork format that can't be worked with easily on other OSes. 68.161.175.2 (talk) 22:37, 21 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]
More info: They were typically a bit of old Motorola 68k machine code wrapped around compressed data in a proprietary (and badly documented) format, both stored in the old Apple resource fork structure. On an early Mac, double-clicking them would run the machine code (which decompressed the data). 68.161.175.2 (talk) 22:43, 21 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]
(I should of course also note you'll be unlikely to be able to play a game from 1992 on Windows 10 without emulation of some kind in any case.) 68.161.175.2 (talk) 23:22, 21 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]
To restate, execute it in an 86k Macintosh emulator, such as the aforementioned Basilisk II. You'll need the emulator to play the game anyway. What Internet Archive does is just run an emulator in your Web browser. --47.146.63.87 (talk) 17:21, 24 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]
I'll try downloading that emulator, then. Thanks for the help.An 'UNDERCOVER' agent (talk) 22:19, 24 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]