Audio file tag editors

Here are some of my favourite audio file (music etc.) tagging / tag editing applications.

1. Free, open-source, multi-platform (Linux, Mac OS X, MS Windows etc.)
   • EasyTAG
   • MusicBrainz Picard (audio fingerprinting powered by AcoustID)
2. Free, closed-source, Win32 only.
   • Mp3tag

Firmware update downloads for some Samsung HDDs

Seagate acquired Samsung's HDD business back in 2011, nevertheless the existing firmware updates for some legacy Samsung HDDs are not available for download from the official Seagate site (look here).
So here are some firmware update download links collected from public sources :)

Model	Family	Firmware version (latest known)	Download
HD501LJ	SpinPoint T166	CR100-13	Dell / Drivers / R180581

Outdated important software packages in Debian unstable

• 2014-06:
  1. util-linux
     • upstream: 2.25-rc1
     • Debian: 2.20.1-5.8
       • bug #678446
  2. coreutils
     • upstream: 8.22
     • Debian: 8.21-1.2
  3. parted
     • upstream: 3.1
     • Debian: 2.3-20
       • bug #678446
  4. libjpeg
     • upstream: 9a
     • Debian: 8d-2
       • bug #646130

Debian bug numbers get added if known. The packages are organized in collections by date. Updated ones should get striked out.

Hints: how to upgrade customized Micron C400 SSDs to the latest generic firmware version

Important notes:

1. DISCLAIMER: this guide is provided here only "just for fun" for experimental, research and educational purposes without any guarantees (or warranties, responsibilities, obligations, liabilities etc.; even no repeatability guaranteed, as this guide has been based solely on just one particular specimen device, sorry), so use it at your own risk (even more, the so-called "reverse engineering" can possibly be illegal in some areas);
2. ATTENTION (DANGER): it can result in an irreversible destruction of ALL or ANY data stored on the target device (including the loss of important metadata like device usage statistics, but it's not wise to hope it will heal / recover / restore any worn-out memory blocks / chips or make the device good as new in performance) and, in theory, on some other storage devices -- please back up ALL the valuable data FIRST;
3. CAUTION: it may even brick your device;
4. WARNING: moreover, it may void the warranty, if any.
5. Feel safe & free to enjoy! ;-)

HOWTO: reload mouse driver in Linux

Sometimes your mouse device (it can be even a touchpad or a trackball) can unexpectedly get stuck [maybe it's a new bug that should be reported?!] in the middle of your work (or maybe it just didn't get recognized after plugging/unplugging/replugging it in).
In such cases, reloading the mouse driver may help (e. g., for PS/2 mouse driver, Linux kernel module is called "psmouse"):

# modprobe -r -v psmouse
# modprobe -v psmouse

You can also get info on any kernel driver modules installed in your system to support different mouse types (e. g., for serial mice, the kernel module is called "sermouse"), and also check if it's currently loaded:

$ ls /lib/modules/$(uname -r)/kernel/drivers/input/mouse
...  sermouse.ko  ...
$ /sbin/modinfo sermouse
...
$ lsmod | grep sermouse
...

Notes:

1. you can check the dmesg log for any strange symptoms:

   $ dmesg | grep psmouse
   ...
   [    9.0123456] psmouse ... lost synchronization, throwing 2 bytes away.

2. the trick will fail if the needed kernel module is built-in (probably only reboot can help);
3. sometimes it's some X11 driver which causes problems (please check /var/log/Xorg.0.log);
4. if you use your mouse in console mode, perhaps it's good to check the post about gpm.

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Last updated: 2016-05-20