Weekly Forum Summary

Our Community
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This week in our forums…

Key Stats

In the past week, our Linux forums had the following activity and key statistics:

Total New Posts: 450
Total New Topics: 28

Top Members

@hydn: 89 posts, 157 likes
@tkn: 48 posts, 146 likes
@ugnvs: 42 posts, 114 likes
@Jymm: 24 posts, 73 likes
@Norm24: 27 posts, 68 likes
@ericmarceau: 25 posts, 68 likes
@Brian_Masinick: 32 posts, 62 likes
@ricmarques: 19 posts, 52 likes
@toadie: 21 posts, 47 likes
@pavlos: 11 posts, 34 likes

Interesting Topics

  • Do you daily drive Linux at work, or just at home?
    In General Discussions, @hydn kicked off a check‑in on where we actually run Linux. @toadie shared that Windows remains mandatory at work, while @shybry747, as IT Manager, daily drives Linux across i3wm, Sway, and VMs. Several retirees like @Brian_Masinick and @Jymm chimed in with long histories on Unix and Linux. @lah7 runs Arch + KDE at both home and work and noted the pragmatic reality of Microsoft 365 in the browser. A thoughtful read on how workplaces enable or block Linux, and how we adapt.

  • Wrong answers only! What does your distro say about you?
    A playful General Discussions thread where satire meets distro stereotypes. @Norm24 and @ugnvs roasted themselves as Ubuntu MATE users, and @toadie delivered a classic “I use Arch” gag that had @hydn doing a double take. New member @Gladicus joined with a witty Arch CachyOS quip. Lighthearted fun that still shows the personality of each setup.

  • What’s everyone working on? 2026 edition
    @hydn restarted this General Discussions tradition and it quickly filled with cool projects. @pavlos is wrestling with PAM policy on a router to relax password constraints. @tkn is prototyping a tiny multiprocessing and IPC “framework” in bash, complete with message‑passing syntax and event loops. @ugnvs outlined an Algol‑like language that compiles to C, and @ericmarceau offered practical PAM config pointers. A great window into what members are building.

  • [Go] cert-checker
    In Showcase, @toadie released a simple Go‑based TLS certificate checker with rapid iteration throughout the week. Packaging improvements for AUR, compressed binaries, sample outputs, and UI refinements followed. Feedback from members like @ugnvs helped shape feature ideas, and there are already screenshots of multiple display modes.

  • Accidentally reformatted efi boot partition
    A Ubuntu support thread that ended in a clean resolution. With measured guidance from @ricmarques and additional pointers from @hydn, @Norm24 confirmed the fix by updating the ESP’s changed UUID in /etc/fstab. A useful reference for anyone who has to recover from an ESP mishap.

  • Self-challenge to report disks like Windows
    In #mate, @ericmarceau shared a handy visual disk usage report script that outputs HTML. The discussion evolved with @pavlos recommending findmnt for reliable mounts reporting and @ricmarques adding a pro tip on using findmnt --verify to catch /etc/fstab errors. Iterations even explored Python rendering approaches and UI styling choices.

  • Battery Power Monitor
    A practical #mate discussion by @Jymm comparing the MATE battery applet and the Ayatana indicator. @Blue_bird explained why the Ayatana indicator can be more stable when upower sends inconsistent readings. Useful for laptop users who want both percentage and time remaining without panel crashes.

  • [QUESTION] QR codes
    In General Discussions, @cute_potato looked for a privacy‑friendly webcam QR decoder on Mint 22.3. @hydn traced Flatpak lag to sandboxing and recommended the reliable zbar-tools with zbarcam, which worked and was bound to a hotkey. Quick, local, and no cloud.

  • My desktop today
    A #mate screenshot parade featuring @Watford, @jaymo_chicago, and @ClaudioDC. @ericmarceau showcased a polished two‑panel setup with a custom “Resolute Raccoon” wallpaper adaptation and a neat launcher to toggle desktop icons, linking to how‑tos for reproducibility.

  • Calling for a discussion: Ubuntu MATE or Ubuntu + MATE DE
    A thoughtful #mate compare‑and‑contrast. @guiverc offered nuanced context from packaging and team perspectives, and @ugnvs experimented with removing ubuntu-desktop after adding MATE. A good read for those deciding between the flavor and layering MATE on a base Ubuntu install.

Activity by the @staff Group

Best Reply or Topic of the Week

  • Best Reply: @ricmarques for a precise and actionable diagnosis in Accidentally reformatted efi boot partition.

    “I believe that @hydn is (probably) absolutely right… the change of the UUID of the ESP… updating the /etc/fstab accordingly should fix that.”
    This guidance directly led to @Norm24 confirming the fix, closing out a potentially stressful boot‑recovery scenario with a clean, teachable solution.

Thanks for reading. See you again next week! :penguin:

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