Raiders of the Lost Downboat - 2023-02-07

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12:05 AM

dupe Confirmed as a duplicate question by the OP in a comment. "Thanks I resolved my issue using that link."

1 hour later…

1:18 AM

[ SmokeDetector | MS ] Potentially bad ip for hostname in body (1): why is apt not able to locate the package but only when ran via script?‭ by hakim00‭ on askubuntu.com

1:51 AM

OT no-repro - "It is some hardware issue. "

2:08 AM

@ArturMeinild There is no policy as such (that I am aware of anyway). However I suspect the general idea would be that it is ok to 'unprotect' a question that isn't currently attracting a lot of attention and doesn’t have a long history of unproductive answers.

166

Q: What is a “protected” or "highly active" question?

Questions can be protected (i.e. marked "highly active"). What does it mean for a question to be protected? Why are some questions protected? Who can protect and unprotect questions? Who can answer a protected question? How are protected questions displayed? When should I protect or unprotect a...

support faq terminology protected-questions

@NotTheDr01ds Hmmm... I went to a zoo once and the only animal there was a dog. It was a Shih Tzu... :)

OT no-repro - "I reinstalled the OS"

2:27 AM

Sigh: techxplore.com/news/2023-02-google-chatgpt-like-bot-bard.html

Archisman Panigrahi

Is there any way to let this user know that there is a solution to their problem? The answer has been deleted, but there is no way to comment askubuntu.com/a/1453644/124466

This (askubuntu.com/questions/1451125/…) is the solution to the exact problem

@ArchismanPanigrahi I have undeleted if you wish to leave a suitable comment?

OT Astronomy Linux

2:55 AM

@andrew.46 Both @ArchismanPanigrahi and I have left comments at this point, and it should be good to re-delete whenever you want. Thanks!

Also, that should indicate that the parent Q is a duplicate.

@andrew.46 I know it's a thorn in our sides as far as some bad eggs on the SE sites, but in general I think more AI is a good thing. As long as it's not named Skynet, Cylon, etc...

@NotTheDr01ds Well, I still think that it is an exciting time to be alive with this new technology sweeping through. But the abuse of this technology on AU has been steadily increasing. I will get the numbers...

Looks like 26 suspensions handed out since January 1st 2023 - February 7th 2023. And these are all the easy to detect 'copy and paste from ChatGPT' cases.

3 hours later…

6:17 AM

[ SmokeDetector | MS ] Bad ip for hostname in answer, bad keyword in answer, blacklisted website in answer, potentially bad ns for domain in answer, potentially bad keyword in answer (281): Installing Spark on Hadoop 2.5‭ by bhima‭ on askubuntu.com

[ Natty | Sentinel ] 16.04 nvidia backlight brightness problem By: Dhruv Shetty 3.5;

2 hours later…

7:50 AM

Why would this be closed? It's a perfectly valid Ubuntu question.. askubuntu.com/questions/1453752/…

Please retract close votes

@andrew.46 Thanks!

8:11 AM

Dupe: askubuntu.com/q/1453848/1066942

And target added to canonical questions list

BeastOfCaerbannog

9:05 AM

I rolled back David's edit because the edit removed the screenshot from the post. This is the second time that I come across a post where the same user removed the screenshot. The first time was this post.

The removal of the images from these posts is not justified as they help provide useful context.

1 hour later…

10:13 AM

[ Natty | Sentinel ] server How to stop dhcpd? By: mark kats 3.5;

BeastOfCaerbannog

@Natty fp

10:56 AM

[ Natty | Sentinel ] boot How to Install Ubuntu on a Lenovo MIIX 300-10IBY By: Lt.Ryder 6.5;

tag:reopen-pls I voted to reopen this question because according to the accepted answer the OP's question which is about software installation does not match Why don't the Ubuntu repositories have the latest versions of software? which this question was closed as a duplicate of and which suggests in the context of this question for the OP to give up because it's not possible to install this package in the OP's Ubuntu.

@NotTheDr01ds This is a link to some image. It doesn't open.

11:13 AM

@Pilot6 I managed to view the image, but the image was not relevant to the question, so I re-edited the question and deleted the confusing image.

@karel That's what I though. There was no need of any image. I though it could be an attempt to promote something.

I voted to reopen this question because according to the accepted answer the OP's question which is about software installation does not match Why don't the Ubuntu repositories have the latest versions of software? which this question was closed as a duplicate of and which suggests in the context of this question for the OP to give up because it's not possible to install this package in the OP's Ubuntu.

[ Natty | Sentinel ] drivers Can't change brightness on version 22.04 By: Ryanasarus2k 3.5;

BeastOfCaerbannog

@Natty tp

@Natty tp

11:42 AM

@karel Interesting, what did the image show for you? It showed a keyboard with the media player controls on mine, which was related (but again, not terribly useful) to the answer.

@Pilot6 I think it was a poor choice, but not nefarious or spam in this case.

I was starting to point a Mod in the direction of the user if they were a spammer, but this appears to be a legit edit. Still, I'm fine with rolling it back - Just didn't want to get the user in trouble for spamming.

BeastOfCaerbannog

11:57 AM

cv-pls partitioning Custom: it is a hardware issue. HDD Keeps Dying After a Few Days‭ - rich‭ 2023-02-06 15:58:31Z

@NotTheDr01ds The controls on the keyboard were not relevant to the answer.

BeastOfCaerbannog

cv-pls python3 Off Topic - programming GTK3 DrawingArea not rendering/updating other than when looking away and looking back‭ - Ippa Seppälä‭ 2023-01-25 13:53:36Z

cv-pls server Off Topic - not about Ubuntu Enable HTTPS on my server‭ - Bananas17‭ 2023-01-27 15:04:20Z

This is not no-repro. The solution is at the OP's comment which I added as a CW.

BeastOfCaerbannog

12:19 PM

Also not no-repro.

cv-pls xubuntu Custom: it's a hardware issue. Computer shut down on its own everytime i start it up‭ - Jhay Rivera‭ 2023-01-26 04:00:20Z

^^^ When the issue is hardware-related, it's better to use a custom closing reason. "No-repro" is not valid as the issue is reproducible, and "not about Ubuntu" directs the user to seek help in other SE sites which also don't support hardware-related questions, thus increasing the user's frustration.

BeastOfCaerbannog

12:42 PM

cv-pls command-line Off Topic - programming Im getting gcc error while copiling c code im working in mqtt application‭ - Arshiya_ Shaik‭ 2023-01-24 10:58:54Z

Actually unclear. Have not voted because it will be closed as "not about Ubuntu".

1:00 PM

[ SmokeDetector | MS ] Link at end of body (98): Research chemical ku crystals‭ by bigchemshop‭ on askubuntu.com

BeastOfCaerbannog

1:18 PM

cv-pls command-line Off Topic - Linux Mint, judging by the screenshot Strange symbols in Linux terminal‭ - Gabriel Silva‭ 2023-01-21 14:04:19Z

1 hour later…

2:35 PM

dupe Confirmed by the OP as a duplicate question in the last paragraph of the question.

2:49 PM

OT hardware issue, faulty webcam

3:28 PM

cv-pls 18.04 From the comments; OP could no longer reproduce the problem. Might have been fixed, but no telling for sure. (NATO) a missing font causes RAM overflow, huge syslog file, then crash ubuntu‭ - horaceT‭ 2019-11-18 00:36:08Z

Same question - weak answer from a user who was suspended today because several other answers were ChatGPT generated. Recommend NAA on that one.

@BeastOfCaerbannog I VTC'd as Unclear. Programming questions on Ubuntu are on-topic, though, right?

3:48 PM

@BeastOfCaerbannog Also that one - "Development on Ubuntu" is in the on-topic list. Am I missing something?

@BeastOfCaerbannog Also confused on this one. How is it not about Ubuntu?

BeastOfCaerbannog

@NotTheDr01ds It depends. Almost all Bash-related questions are. For other programming languages it depends on the nature of the question. If the question is, for example, about how to create a GUI application in C++ and have the window have a specific title, then this question is not on-topic here. If on the other hand the question is about an error they get while developing the application and it is related to the underlying system, i.e. Ubuntu, then it is on-topic.

@BeastOfCaerbannog The on-topic help doesn't make that distinction. I agree that it would be better on Stack Overflow, but the help text is a blanket "Development on Ubuntu" is on-topic ...

BeastOfCaerbannog

Here are some relevant meta threads:

32

Q: Are bash/shell scripting questions on topic?

I have seen a number of users voting to close scripting questions as off topic. Is this the community consensus? Are bash questions not welcome here? How about other shell programming questions?

discussion scope

1

Q: Can I ask for programming advice on this site?

The question is in the title. This is the most direct question ever.

14

Q: Can we please ban unrelated programming questions?

This issue has been discussed in the past: http://meta.askubuntu.com/questions/5695/why-was-a-purely-programming-related-question-not-moved-closed But I disagree with Andrea Corbellini because I believe that the question Emit signal for GIO.DBusProxy in Python? is completely on topic, because it...

discussion feature-request scope

22

A: Are python questions appropriate for this site?

Development is on-topic here unless it really has nothing to do with Ubuntu. I wouldn't object to Python questions here but you might get better service on Stack Overflow which is really all about programming. If your questions involve Ubuntu peculiarities or packaging a Python application, then...

Agreed - But Oli's statement (which was probably the precursor for the help text, or at least based on it), is that a general Python question would be on-topic on either site, but better on Stack Overflow. If the question was about something unique to Ubuntu, then it would be better here.

BeastOfCaerbannog

@NotTheDr01ds Hmmm. I may be (am?) wrong about that one.

3:57 PM

I try to point them to SO (which I've done in a comment to that user's answer), but I wouldn't VTC at least.

@BeastOfCaerbannog No worries - Pobody's nerfect (which you edited on me, btw 😆)

BeastOfCaerbannog

@NotTheDr01ds Would then a question about how to have a specific title on a Python GUI window would be on-topic?

@BeastOfCaerbannog Seems to be, according to everything I've seen. But again, if it didn't seem that it was unique to Ubuntu, I'd still recommend that they move it to Stack Overflow (after checking for duplicates, of course).

BeastOfCaerbannog

@NotTheDr01ds hahaha, sorry about that! I hadn't noticed the "nerfect", so I thought it was a typo!

@NotTheDr01ds BUT, I have you this:

The not about Ubuntu closing reason says: "This is not about an official Ubuntu flavor. Questions about other Linux distributions can be asked on Unix & Linux, those about Windows on Super User, those about Apple products on Ask Different and generic programming questions on Stack Overflow."

Such a question would be a generic programming question, thus off-topic.

@BeastOfCaerbannog Sure, but in this case they specifically listed their Ubuntu release ;-)

You could just as easily say that a bug in xterm that was generic to all distributions wasn't on topic if you used that logic ;-)

Or just a bash question about how to set the prompt.

I'd guess that fewer than 10% of the questions here are really "unique to Ubuntu".

BeastOfCaerbannog

@NotTheDr01ds The consensus about Bash is somewhat different than other languages. People here may be more well-equipped to answer Bash questions than SO.

@NotTheDr01ds I didn't say anything about a question being unique to Ubuntu.

4:03 PM

Ok, but the user here was doing development on Ubuntu, right?

BeastOfCaerbannog

@NotTheDr01ds But in that case an answer would try to provide a fix or workaround for Ubuntu.

@NotTheDr01ds They asked a programming question, but, yeah, on Ubuntu.

And the loop goes on :P

Sorry, I might be misunderstanding your point. I thought you were saying that a "general programming question" isn't "about an official Ubuntu flavor", even if they are developing on an official Ubuntu flavor. My point (if that's your point) is that a question about Firefox (or Docker, or et. al.) isn't "about an official Ubuntu flavor".

I always like to go back to @Zanna's great quote, "We should not close questions just because they smell Minty/Windowsy." I'd say that extends to, "We should not close questions just because they smell programmy." ;-)

BeastOfCaerbannog

@NotTheDr01ds The problem of Firefox would be on Ubuntu, and thus we would try to answer for Ubuntu. If the problem is not related to Ubuntu or we cannot find a workaround for Ubuntu, then it could be a bug.

If someone would ask how to create an addon for Firefox on Ubuntu, then that would most probably be off-topic, because most addons don't depend on the OS.

That the would use Ubuntu to develop the addon wouldn't make the question on-topic.

@BeastOfCaerbannog Maybe, but even with programming questions, (1) The user may not know in advance whether or not the problem they are facing is unique to Ubuntu; just that it is occurring for them on Ubuntu. (2) There may be "unique to Ubuntu" answers that are possible. For instance, (purely hypothetical) a there might be a way to get a browser extension to communicate with a locally running Systemd service that provides the service they are looking for.

I think the "Not about Ubuntu" close reason is a stretch, since the help text (and Mod guidance in Meta) is that we accept "development on Ubuntu" questions here, even if they are general Python (et. al.) questions. Again, we're definitely not the best place for those - And I've recommended that users delete them here and repost on SO. But I don't think we should VTC them under the current policy, at least.

BeastOfCaerbannog

4:21 PM

For (1), yes, that's up to a user to decide where it's better to ask their question. If it isn't the correct place, we can tell them and close the question (as we do). For (2) that's also true, but it's not the general rule. It's still not a great place here for such questions.

@NotTheDr01ds I would argue that most generic programming questions can't and won't be answered here, at least in a reasonable amount of time. Having them closed here quickly as not about Ubuntu directs the OP to SO, which is a much more appropriate place to ask and much more possible for the OP to get a solution.

We should also keep in mind that cross-posting is not allowed, so a user could not ask both here and in SO.

"most generic programming questions can't and won't be answered here, at least in a reasonable amount of time" - Agree with that, but that's why I recommend the user delete it here and repost on SO.

BeastOfCaerbannog

(theoretically at least)

But I give them the choice.

BeastOfCaerbannog

OK, we have different views on the matter of the "correct" action. :)

I'd also agree with updating the policy along those lines. So if you want to open a Meta post on it, I'd support that.

I'm just basing it on the current policy and guidance.

BeastOfCaerbannog

4:27 PM

@NotTheDr01ds BTW I retracted the CV from that one (the downvote isn't mine). Thanks.

Cool

BeastOfCaerbannog

@NotTheDr01ds So how do you think the policy should be altered?

I'd support updating the on-topic text to say something along the lines of (off-the-cuff), "Development questions regarding Ubuntu".

Funny, was already typing ;-)

That puts the burden on the question being about Ubuntu, rather than just the development being done on Ubuntu.

With a link to the Meta discussion.

BeastOfCaerbannog

@NotTheDr01ds Gotcha!

Under that wording, I'd support closing the question(s) you linked above.

At least the Python one.

The MQTT might be a bit tricker under Ubuntu.

BeastOfCaerbannog

4:31 PM

BTW if you want to write that post, be my guest! You're much better at writing meta posts!

4:54 PM

Dupe: askubuntu.com/q/1453934/1066942

5:16 PM

[ Natty | Sentinel ] server Remote SSH access: connection refused By: duxx 4.0;

5:33 PM

0

Q: Suggestions for revising the "on-topic" policy for programming questions

@BeastOfCaerbannog and I were having a chat discussion today debating the role of "general" programming questions here on Ask Ubuntu. The current on-topic help text includes: Questions you may ask: ... Development on Ubuntu. There's also this older Meta post from @Oli who mentioned: Developme...

discussion scope questions

BeastOfCaerbannog

5:48 PM

@NotTheDr01ds You're fast!

→ 9 messages moved to Island of castaway thoughts

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Feb '237

Raiders of the Lost Downboat

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