Setup instructions

Environment details

• display manager: gdm3 (better compatibility than sddm)
• desktop environment: kde plasma
• window manager: i3

OS setup resources

• swap: https://opensource.com/article/19/2/swap-space-poll
• uefi vs legacy/BIOS booting: http://www.rodsbooks.com/linux-uefi/
• kde plasma version heirarchy:
  • kde-full
  • kde-standard
  • kde-plasma-desktop

Install core applications

• chrome
• git
• vscode

Files

Clone repo and run install.sh.

Display(s) configuration

Position and scale

• via kde - System Settings
• via nvidia - Nvidia X Server Settings
  • if failing to write config, either copy raw output to file manually or try sudo chmod u+x /usr/share/screen-resolution-extra/nvidia-polkit
• via xrandr (recommended) - to ~/.xprofile, append xrandr [OPTION]
  • rotate display: --rotate <direction>
  • individually scale display
    • set virtual screen dims: --fb <virtual width>x<virtual height>
    • for each display, set scale and position: --output <display> --scale <scale x>x<scale y> --pos <pos x>x<pos y>

i3 integration

One can assign i3 workspaces to specific displays. The provided config includes i3 commands for this purpose from ~/.local/i3/display_assignments.conf

Security setup

Fingerprint

1. sudo apt install fprintd libpam-fprintd
2. Add fingerprints via System Settings or fprintd-enroll
3. (opt) Check that prints work with fprintd-verify

Facial rec

Install Howdy: https://github.com/boltgolt/howdy

• Outside of any virtual env, sudo pip install dlib --break-system-packages¹
• Become root and navigate to /lib/security/howdy
  • dlib-data/install.sh
  • chmod -R a+rx dlib-data models records
  • chmod -R a+rxw snapshots
  • In compare.py, modify import ConfigParser to import configparser as ConfigParser¹
    

¹See boltgolt/howdy#781 for more details

Enable new auth methods

pam-auth-update

System Settings

Appearance

• Global Theme: Breeze Dark (appearance and desktop/window layout)
• Application Style > Configure GNOME/GTK Application Style... > GTK Theme: Breeze

Workspace Behavior

General Behavior: Click files or folders: Selects them

Shortcuts

Import <top-level>/shortcuts/system.kkrc via Import Schema...

Startup and Shutdown

• Autostart: none
• Background Services > enable only:
  • Accounts
  • Automatic Location for Night Color
  • Gnome/GTK Settings Synchronization Service
  • Keyboard Daemon
  • Plasma Vault module
  • (opt) Removable Device Automounter
  • Search Folder Updater
  • SMART
  • Thunderbolt Device Monitor
  • Time Zone
  • Touchpad
  • Write Daemon
• Desktop Session: start an empty session

Input Devices

• Keyboard
  • Hardware: NumLock on Plasma Startup: Turn on
  • Advanced: Position of Compose key: Left Win
• Mouse: Acceleration profile: Adaptive
• Touchpad
  • Pointer acceleration: 0.60
  • enable all Tapping options
  • Scrolling: Invert scroll direction

Other settings

File manager places:

• Home
• Pictures
• Downloads
• Trash
• Desktop
• Music
• Videos
• debian-config
• projects

Other appearance settings

• nitrogen: set image to desired; see ~/.resources
• konsole
  • Enable provided profile, set as default
  • Disable system and session toolbars
• code
  • Left sidebar: enable only:
    • Explorer
    • Search
    • Source Control
    • Run and Debug
    • Extensions
    • (Note: New extensions will add themselves to the sidebar)
  • Source Control > Source Control: disable Gitlens's "Show Commit Graph"
  • Status Bar: enable only:
    • Problems
    • Debug
    • GitLens Current Line Blame
    • Editor Selection
    • Editor Indentation
    • Editor Encoding
    • Editor End of Line
    • Editor Language
    • Notifications

Shortcuts

In <top-level>/shortcuts, import:

• system.kksrc via System Settings > Shortcuts > Import Schema...
• <app name>.shortcuts via <app> > Settings > Configure Keyboard Shortcuts... > Manage Schemas > More Actions > Import Schema...

Other software

• Jupyter notebook
  • Activate base conda env and conda install nb_conda_kernels
  • In new envs, conda install ipykernel
  • Start notebook servers from base env, then select desired kernel in target env

Shell Appendix

Convert b/w file formats

• Documents: best to use online converter; yet to find good linux solution
• Images: convert <file>.<source format> <target name>.<target format> (from apt package imagemagick)

DPI, set global

• In ~/.Xresources, create/modify the line Xft.dpi: <global dpi>
• Ensure ~/.initrc has xrdb -merge ~/.Xresources

GNOME desktop environemnt, purge

1. sudo apt remove ubuntu-desktop
2. sudo apt remove *gnome*
   • If using gdm3, reinstall with sudo apt install gdm3
3. (opt) Remove all associated xsession configs from /usr/share/xsessions

GRUB, set kernel params

1. /etc/default/grub: GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT:
   • "quiet splash"
   • "nomodeset"
   • ""
2. sudo update-grub (writes to /boot/grub/grub.cfg)

Keycodes, show

• xev
• showkey

Pipelines

Remember: pipes create asynchronous subshells. As with any other subshell, variable assignments occur within the subshell's scope and therefore have no effect in the parent shell.

Consider a common case in which this wrinkle becomes relevant: a while read loop at the end of a pipeline that iterates the pipeline's results. One must be sure that no commands following such a loop rely on variable assignments therein.

TLS certificates

• root CA: openssl req -x509 -out rootCA.crt -keyout rootCA.key -noenc -days <valid days>
• SAN-compliant certificate:
  • openssl req -new -out <domain>.csr -keyout <domain>.key -noenc
  • <domain>.ext:
    • authorityKeyIdentifier = keyid,issuer
    • basicConstraints = CA:FALSE
    • subjectAltName = @alt_names
    • [alt_names]
    • DNS.1 = <domain>
  • openssl x509 -req -in <domain>.csr -CA <CA>.crt -CAkey <CA>.key -out <domain>.crt -days <valid days> -extfile <domain>.ext
• package certificate and private key: openssl pkcs12 -export -in <domain>.crt -inkey <domain>.key -out <domain>.p12

Package versions, maintain multiple

update-alternatives

Ventoy, write safely

• Always check hashes
• After writing new ISO, sync

X11 windows

• properties: xprop
• info: xwininfo

TODO

• programatic install:
  • System Settings
  • VSCode
• spotify pulseaudio sink input cleanup service
• update Jupyter instructions