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Joined 2 年前
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Cake day: 2023年11月27日

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  • As far as the TDE devs know, there haven’t been any issues resulting in a user getting hacked, they’ve modernized the underlying code, and actively patch any reported vulnerabilities: http://redlib.tiekoetter.com/r/linuxquestions/comments/1f81hz4/is_q4ostrinity_desktop_environment_inherently/

    That said, it is still a niche codebase with a small team, so they might not have the resources to be so proactive against theoretical vulnerabilities as a project like KDE or GNOME with Wayland. If you’re being targeted, TDE would certainly be a shiny attack surface, but otherwise, I don’t really see why a hacking group would go for something as niche as TDE. There’s a tradeoff, like the one I take with X11 because I refuse to give up my XFCE+Chicago95 setup for an arguably more secure Wayland setup.

    Most of the issues of a desktop environment just come down to there being more code and therefore a larger attack surface. Lots of widgets, obscure processes, and nooks and crannies to hide malicious stuff too. And legacy code with expansive privileges from the days before security was as much of a concern. While not Linux, it is analogous with security being a big part of why Microsoft released Server Core, which stripped out much of the GUI.

    An extreme case, I also know of a someone who used Windows XP to do rather important work on the internet until around 2020. Only thing that stopped them were websites getting too bloated to load on their computer. But they did follow the basic rules as you mentioned and seemed to be just fine.





  • Debian. Truly the universal operating system. Runs on all of my laptops, desktops, servers, and NAS with no fuss and no need to keep track of distro-specific differences. If something has a Linux version, it probably works on Debian.

    Granted, I am a bit biased. All of my hardware is at least 5 years old. Also came from Windows, where I kept only the OS and browser up to date, couldn’t be bothered with shiny new features. A package manager is already a huge luxury.



  • Appendix: Fixing some flaws of the counterfeit keyboard

    TrackPoint

    • It is soldered to the ribbon cable, so replacing with a genuine module is not exactly trivial.
    • Disassembling the module reveals a metal plate between the module circuitry and the keyboard baseplate. Without this in the way, the TrackPoint can sit at a more comfortable level raised subtly above the keycaps.
    • There are two more screws holding the plate, accessed by removing the G and H keys.
    • With all screws removed, move the plate to the other side of the circuitry. Line up the screw holes and replace the two screws under the G and H keys with longer ones (~0.5 cm, I took a couple from a dead hard drive).
    • Tighten the screws just enough to keep everything in place, too much and the undue pressure on the strain gauge will cause a dreadful anisotropic response. You may need to play with the centering. Really makes you appreciate the effort put into getting the genuine TrackPoint just right as even 0.5 mm can make a difference.
    • As needed, bend the keyboard back into a concave shape so it doesn’t spring up and down while using the TrackPoint. This fixes the mechanics of a sunken TrackPoint so that it is infinitely more tolerable, but it is still worse at tracking fine movements than a genuine module.

    Mouse buttons

    • The buttons not clicking when pressing the corner near the middle is due to collision with the mechanism of the middle mouse button.
    • Pop off the right and left click buttons and file down their edges near the middle mouse button to give a bit more clearance.








  • Sorry, forgot to clarify that I had only purchased one counterfeit. The remarks on the other possible counterfeits were gathered from listing photos and various anecdotes. I don’t have much of a recommendation for which knockoff in particular and it’s also hard to tell what exactly they’ll send you. In my case, I ordered one where the listing had a photo of keycaps with Arial lettering whereas I received a unit with Helvetica lettering.

    Even counterfeit keyboards rarely go for less than $20, at least on eBay. If you are willing to wait, a used but genuine unit will show up for the same price every now and then. For $10 more, you may be able to find a T410 or similar sold for parts and then harvest the keyboard.

    Also, this listing seems to have a real NMB keyboard for under $20: http://www.ebay.com/itm/267185969929

    I hesitate to confirm because the seller had two and only one is pictured with a popped out delete key.