JAXB, which means Java Architecture for XML Binding, is a library that can be used to persist Java objects as XML documents. XML is a text-based format that can be used to represent complex and hierarchical data. JAXB can unmarshal a XML document directly into objects whose classes are defined by the developer, rather than… Continue reading JAXB puzzles with Java 11
Author: Eric Buist
Many ways to create the same thing
One important issue of software development is that problems can be resolved many ways and not all solutions are equal. Some solutions cannot be maintained because some developers cannot grasp how it works and insist on switching to something else. Some solutions cannot be deployed because the chosen providers don’t support it. Some solutions don’t… Continue reading Many ways to create the same thing
The down side of a NAS
Recently, I almost lost a bunch of ripped blu-rays, DVDs and downloaded movies and TV series. I thought a RAID5 would preserve that reasonably well, but I didn’t consider carefully enough recovery scenarios in case the whole NAS dies. I learned how a NAS can be expensive and paint myself in a corner, but I… Continue reading The down side of a NAS
An intricate sounding puzzle
All this story started on Wednesday, October 23rd 2019. When I turned on my subwoofer, I found out it was producing a constant noise, even without audio source playing. I verified the connector at both ends, everything was fine. My first reaction was to think the subwoofer was broken. It was too big for me… Continue reading An intricate sounding puzzle
Not all USB C ports are equal
I kind of already knew but not realized it, until I got my new Flex 15 from Lenovo. This laptop comes with one USB C port. Lenovo proposes a travel hub as an accessory. That hub fits into the USB C port, offering one USB 3.1 port, one HDMI output and one Ethernet port. Unfortunately,… Continue reading Not all USB C ports are equal
Misleading broken connector
Wednesday, October 23rd 2019, while troubleshooting an issue with my subwoofer, I discovered that one of my S/PDIF optical cable was disconnected; I found out the loose cable near my A/V receiver. This was previously used to send audio from my HTPC to my A/V receiver, before I got HDMI I/O on my new Yamaha… Continue reading Misleading broken connector
Will it remain possible to upgrade laptops with SSD?
Last year, I upgraded my sister’s Thinkpad G500 with a SSD, which greatly increased its performance. The laptop also suffered from hardware issues because of its faulty DVD drive; removing the drive surprisingly cured it. After this success, I was thinking about improving her boyfriend’s laptop, an HP machine that happened to be slower than… Continue reading Will it remain possible to upgrade laptops with SSD?
Bumpy Windows 10 activation
It’s been months I was thinking about a way to upgrade my parents’ computer to Windows 10. The machine was running a copy of Windows 7 that failed to activate so required a crack. I wanted to both upgrade to Windows 10 and get it a fully activated genuine copy. However, the machine was four… Continue reading Bumpy Windows 10 activation
A dying laptop
My Lenovo Ideapad Yoga 15 is dying. It happened the second time today, and that’s quite concerning. Suddenly, the machine freezes, keyboard is not responding, the mouse is moving but clicking does nothing. There is no way out other than rebooting, and when I did it, the screen became black with an error message displayed… Continue reading A dying laptop
Ubuntu 18.10: a silent release
Usually, upgrading Ubuntu goes well. I run the Upgrade tool which downloads new packages, installs them and then asks me to reboot. Some new versions had minor issues, for example Wayland not fully compatible with my NVIDIA card or an old version of MATE preventing the dist-upgrade, but nothing major, nothing that couldn’t be worked… Continue reading Ubuntu 18.10: a silent release