iceshrimp.net - Link to source
The bug where after being on for 24-36 hours, the second hard drive on my #framework 16 laptop just...disappears...is getting really, really old. I thought it was temperature, so I started logging that. But nope. It's not an issue with the flash, because the data always comes back just fine, and there are no read errors or anything. It just gets tired after a day and decides to go for a nap. This is the problem with a fully repairable laptop: I installed it, so whatever's wrong, it's now my problem. I can't just go bother Del or whomever. It's running #Windows 11 because screen readers on Linux are still terrible, so anyone suggesting "install Linux" as the answer gets blocked. But I really don't think it's a Windows thing; it's not in device manager, or anywhere. Only fully powering down the machine and turning it back on again helps. A restart isn't enough. So it has to be a hardware thing!
#Windows #framework
in reply to 🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

iceshrimp.net - Link to source

🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

I also don't love that I had to install two firmware updates on my #framework 16: one for the number pad, and one for the keyboard. But I was able to do so without an admin prompt! What firmware does this thing run? What can it do? How does it communicate with the system? Can someone just install a keylogger directly into my keyboard firmware without me even having to grant any kind of permission or be admin? This is...worrying. github.com/FrameworkComputer/qmk_firmware/releases/tag/v0.3.1

Release v0.3.1 Beta · FrameworkComputer/qmk_firmware

Compatibility This will need the following BIOS: Framework 16 AMD Ryzen 7040 Series: BIOS 4.01 or later Framework 16 AMD Ryzen AI 300: BIOS 3.00 or later (shipping from the factory) Changes compa...
GitHub
#framework
in reply to James H

iceshrimp.net - Link to source

🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

@quanin@mcourcel Yeah, that's the next step. I got myself the upgraded motherboard and graphics module, so once they arrive I'll be opening up the machine again anyway, so I'll do more drive testing at that point. I intend to reuse the old motherboard to build a little media PC, so I might just put a new drive in the laptop, and put this drive in there and see what it does. That way if it is the drive it'll be easier for me to access, and I need a drive for the media PC anyway.
@James H @Martin
in reply to James H

iceshrimp.net - Link to source

🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

@quanin@mcourcel See, I have that with my macs. But every Windows laptop I've ever had, even though the CPU etc are still fine, something always goes wrong by between three and five years. Sometimes it's the fans, or the keyboard, or the screen hinge, or the USB plugs get wonky, or the headphone jack stops working, or...something. And then it's out of warranty so it'd cost so much to fix it I might as well just get a new one. I've tossed so many perfectly good components for that reason over the years that it makes me cry.
@James H @Martin
in reply to 🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

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James H

How long have you had your current laptop? To be clear I'm not knocking the strategy at all but it sounds like you just shortened the timeline on that pattern. Also you just explained why I tend to lean toward Dell over places like HP. They're the only one with a 4-year warranty. It's not perfect but if the motherboard goes in year 3 I'm still covered. That's never happened.
in reply to James H

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🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

@quanin@mcourcel I've had the laptop for a year. I don't actually need to upgrade the motherboard; I'm only doing it because I was otherwise going to build a media PC anyway, and this way I get two for the price of one. I wouldn't recommend any other blind Framework 16 owner to upgrade unless they have some use for the old motherboard. The second hard drive that is having issues is one I installed in January myself. So if I wasn't upgrading the laptop, I would just replace it and things would be fine. Nothing else is wrong with the machine. And if it was, all of the ports are expansion cards that I can replace for between $5 and $15 depending on the port in question.
@James H @Martin
in reply to James H

iceshrimp.net - Link to source

🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

@quanin@mcourcel Yup, and that would be annoying. But the motherboard has two drive slots, so it wouldn't be the end of the world. Somehow, though, I doubt it. I installed the drive in January and it worked perfectly until October. That kind of connection doesn't usually just die. Or if it does, other things on the board usually die alongside it.
@James H @Martin
in reply to James H

iceshrimp.net - Link to source

🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

@quanin@mcourcel I'm also starting to wonder about something being underpowered. The USBC adapter is 180w, but at full load the machine pulls 240w. In theory, it should pull from the battery to make up the difference until the load goes back down. But, well, you know. Theory. I'm also grabbing myself a 240w USBC adapter, and I'm interested to see if that changes anything.
@James H @Martin
in reply to 🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

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James H

I mean, anything's possible (see my comment about hardware being weird, bro), but presumably you've been pulling 240 at full load since January. If that's your issue, you should have seen it before now. Also why does it specifically become underpowered after 24 hours? Yeah, that's *a* problem and you should definitely replace that adaptor, but I don't think that's *the* problem.
in reply to James H

iceshrimp.net - Link to source

🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

@quanin@mcourcel Well, why would a connection on the board die after 24 hours? And then be fine the minute I shut down the machine and power it back on? Neither make sense to me. But if I run Forza at the max settings, I can watch the battery discharge even while the laptop is plugged in. It's fun! It makes me wonder about some kind of power management thing in the BIOS? Framework did release a BIOS update recently, that lets the laptop charge to a max of 80 percent for battery protection if it hasn't been unplugged in over a week.
@James H @Martin
in reply to James H

iceshrimp.net - Link to source

🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

@quanin@mcourcel The problem is...I...don't know? I don't always leave the laptop on all the time, obviously. And sometimes, of course, Windows just crashes for one reason or another. Or it installs an update overnight or whatever. And then the first few times I noticed it I went "Huh." and rebooted before I noticed the pattern. And of course it's my secondary drive, so I only notice it's gone when I go to play a game (it's where Steam installs all the games); if I'm just browsing the web or whatever it could be gone without me even noticing. October is when I noticed the pattern, started leaving the laptop on 24/7, and checking the drive frequently.
@James H @Martin
in reply to 🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

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James H

I mean, the entire point of Framework is the opening it up and doing things to it. What did they expect you were gonna do? And honestly, I mean, when you upgrade your motherboard you're basically replacing your bios anyway, so if it's a bios issue you've just solved it. What you want to make sure is you're not transferring a failing motherboard to your media PC.
in reply to James H

iceshrimp.net - Link to source

🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

I'm also keeping a close eye on the Framework Community forums, and I haven't seen anyone else reporting this type of issue. So...yeah. Once I get the new motherboard I'll have a lot more testing options, and almost none of them will involve opening the laptop multiple times. And if the motherboard is failing, it's still under warranty, so I can go through the replacement process on the media PC while still having a working laptop. If the drive is failing, it's mine and I'll be sad and replace it. If the BIOS is failing, I'll at least have more proof of that.
This entry was edited (1 week ago)
in reply to James H

iceshrimp.net - Link to source

🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

@quanin@mcourcel The nice thing about Steam is your saves are stored to the cloud. So assuming you have lots of Internet, you could get away with a 500 gig drive and only install the game you're currently playing. If you uninstall it, you can generally just reinstall and pick back up again and all your saves will be there. Also there are smaller games like Stardew Valley that's only like 500 megs or slay the spire that I think is under a gig. It's just the AAA titles that are huge.
@James H @Martin
in reply to James H

iceshrimp.net - Link to source

🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

@quanin@mcourcel They...uh...sort of have? But a game can have all of the accessibility features and still not be fully playable without vision. But if you've played a game for less than two hours, Steam will issue an automatic refund, no questions asked. partner.steamgames.com/doc/accessibility_features

Accessibility Features (Steamworks Documentation)

partner.steamgames.com
@James H @Martin
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iceshrimp.net - Link to source

🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

@quanin@mcourcel You can also find other completely blind folks on steam, and follow them. Someone's steam profile shows every game they've played, how long they've played it, and the achievements they have (if the game supports achievements). However, some games may have accessibility mods, so once you find a blind person who plays something, you then need to do a quick internet search for game+accessible mod or whatever.
@James H @Martin
in reply to James H

iceshrimp.net - Link to source

🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

@quanin@mcourcel Okay, here's a list of the games I have:
* Alcyone: The Last City: fully playable, but only with annoying SAPI text to speech
* Alt-Frequencies: fully playable
* Arcade Spirits: fully playable, outputs text to the clipboard, so you need autoclip
* Arcade Spirits: The New Challengers: same
* As Dusk Falls: fully playable
* Balatro: you need a mod but installation is easy
* BROK the InvestiGator: fully playable
* Citizen of Rome - Dynasty Ascendant: fully playable
* Conjury: fully playable
* cyberpunkdreams: fully playable
* Dark Passenger: fully playable
* Diablo: mostly playable
* Doki Doki Literature Club: you need a mod and installing it is irritating
* Doki Doki Literature Club Plus!: this is a remastered version of the above game and the mod is much easier to install and better in every way
* Escape from Norwood: fully playable
* Factorio: fully playable with mods
* Firebird: fully playable
* Forza Motorsport: fully playable
* Hearthstone: fully playable with mods
* Heroes Rise: The Prodigy: fully playable
* Kilta: fully playable
* The Last of Us™ Part I: fully playable
* The Last of Us™ Part II: fully playable
* Lost and Hound: fully playable
* Luck be a Landlord: fully playable
* Magic Research: fully playable
* Magic Research 2: fully playable
* Microsoft Flight Simulator: only playable if you devote your entire life to it and pay a monthly subscription for the mod and make the correct pagan sacrifices
* Night of the Full Moon: fully playable
* Penny Larceny: Gig Economy Supervillain: fully playable
* Periphery Synthetic: fully playable
* Pizza Game: fully playable
* Sanctuary in Time: fully playable
* The Secret of Darkwoods: fully playable
* SEQUENCE STORM: fully playable
* Shining Song Starnova: fully playable with autoclip
* Skullgirls: fully playable if you own a controller
* Slay the Spire: fully playable with a mod called say the spire
* Smugglers 5: Invasion: playable if you like using object navigation and OCR
* soundStrider: fully playable
* Stardew Valley: playable with mods
* Thaumistry: In Charm's Way: fully playable
* Trawel: fully playable
* Warsim: The Realm of Aslona: fully playable
* World Empire 2027: fully playable

I would recommend sequence storm as your first place to start. Good fun, finishable in a few days, requires no modding. Then maybe move on to Slay The Spire and Balatro to get used to modding stuff and how that feels. Both excellent games that take months to master. There are many more mainstream accessible games, these are just the ones I've personally played.

@James H @Martin

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in reply to 🇨🇦Samuel Proulx🇨🇦

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Dickson Tan

Nice list, some questions if you don't mind

1. Doesn't Kilta have long delays between it reading various menus, making it a chore to navigate the UI.
2. How strategic is Night of the Full Moon? I love the difficulty of Dawncaster and Slay The Spire. How accurate is its description of "Mild strategic turn-based card battle"?
3. How do you get past the huge list of countries to select from in World Empire 2027? I couldn't get past that in the demo.

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