… and can be run independently of XFCE

I am really happy that the development of the XFCE Calendar program, Orage, has been picked up again. I was never sure why it was abandoned, as the basic program hasn’t really changed, it just needed to link to more modern libraries. But I’m not a programmer, so what do I know?

Orage can be run as a standalone appointments calendar, which stores its data in ics format. Where it becomes really powerful, is in conjunction a background program called vdirsyncer. This enables data to be exchanged with online services such as Google Calendar. I wrote about that a while back, and the basics haven’t changed. I try to update that article from time to time.

I wrote about some cheap watches I had, and with Christmas presents, I now have two more. I thought that I would add a review, from scratch, of all the Skmei watches I have. Some I have had for a couple of days, others a couple of months now. The type I’ve avoided is where there are both digital and analogue displays with totally separate movements. All watches drift a little, but if I had two displays on a watch which drifted apart from each other, it would drive me mad. The three dual display types I have, have only one movement between both digital and analogue and stay in time with each other. More of that when I come to each watch.

Continuing to use Orage calendar after its discontinuation, also without XFCE at all.

This article has been replaced. The new one is here.

The “how-to” for using vdirsyncer to link Orage to your Google Calendar is here.

There is a big trade in cheaper memory sticks, that is, all types. These include both USB Pen Drives and SDXC and micro-SDXC (aka TF) types. But there are many others. Some cheaper ones have speed problems, and if that’s not a concern, go ahead. But amongst them are a number of Fake Memory drives. Let’s just explain what that means.

24th October 2020: Tonight the clocks go back here in Britain. So, last Saturday, a few days after I wrote this previous article, I decided to set all five watches to the correct time, except for the two that were right within a second, and see how much they had drifted over the course of a week. I am using my computer clock as reference, as it is linked to Network Time Protocol, which means, in effect, that, it is always right! Especially if I’ve just rebooted it. So let’s see how each watch has fared.

Updated: 31st October 2020. Another week…
Updated: 6th November 2020. Another watch!

Update here.

When I wrote recently about cheap watches, I said that was it for now, but I have ordered another one, not only that, I’ve received it as well as the super-cheap one I had already ordered. It’s difficult to draw comparisons as I haven’t had a couple of them long enough, but some things are very noticeable.

No, I’m not talking about a dodgy decision in a professional boxing match. Read on and it will all become clear.

Our George Foreman grill had to be replaced. Big areas of the non-stick coating had come off. The reason for this is that it’s almost impossible to clean, because being an electrical item, it can’t be immersed in water. There are things you can do to make cleaning easier, but none are perfect.