When you need to change the commit message of a past commit that isn’t HEAD, git commit –amend alone won’t help. You’ll need to use interactive rebase to stop at that commit, amend it, and then continue. Interactive Rebase to Edit a Commit The core approach is git rebase -i with the commit hash. Say…
A sequence point is a point in execution where all side effects from previous evaluations are guaranteed to be complete and visible. Understanding sequence points is critical for writing correct C code, especially when dealing with expressions that modify variables. The C standard defines side effects as changes to the state of the execution environment…
If you’re running Google AdSense on your site, you might want to show ads only to desktop visitors and hide them on mobile devices. This reduces clutter on smaller screens and can sometimes improve user experience—though test your bounce rates to confirm it actually helps your metrics. Using CSS Media Queries The cleanest approach is…
A database schema is the blueprint that defines how data is organized and stored in a database. Think of it as the architectural plan for your database—it specifies tables, columns, data types, relationships, constraints, and rules that govern how data can be stored and accessed. Core Components of a Schema A schema encompasses several key…
Attaching storage to a running Xen DomU without rebooting is straightforward using the xl toolstack. This is useful when you need to add capacity, attach backup storage, or provision new volumes without downtime. Basic Disk Attachment To attach a logical volume or physical disk to a running DomU, use xl block-attach on Dom0: xl block-attach…
When working with codebases that use non-standard file extensions for C source files, ctags won’t recognize them by default. You can configure it to treat files with custom extensions like .c0 or .puc as C source code. Using the langmap option The simplest approach is to add language mappings to your ctags configuration. Edit ~/.ctags…
Vim determines file types by extension to apply syntax highlighting and indentation. If you have custom file extensions that should be treated as C files, you need to configure Vim to recognize them. Using autocommand in .vimrc Add an autocommand to your ~/.vimrc: ” Treat .h and .c files in a custom directory as C…
When you need to share work in progress or maintain a separate feature branch on a remote Git server, you’ll need to create a local branch and push it upstream. Here’s how to do it properly. Basic workflow The fundamental process involves three steps: Create a local branch and switch to it Make changes and…
When your iPhone completely freezes or becomes unresponsive, a force restart is usually the fastest way to get it working again. Unlike a regular restart, a force restart bypasses the normal shutdown process and forces the device to reboot immediately. Force Restart by iPhone Model The method depends on which iPhone you have. Apple changed…
When running make recursively with $(MAKE) or make -C, you’ll see verbose messages like “Entering directory” and “Leaving directory” for each subdirectory. These messages clutter the build output and make it harder to spot actual errors. The Quick Fix Pass –no-print-directory to make: make –no-print-directory Or set it in your Makefile: .MAKEFLAGS: –no-print-directory Suppressing via…
Adding a second metadata directory to your HDFS NameNode increases reliability by maintaining synchronized replicas of the namespace and transaction logs across separate disks. This guide walks through the process safely. Prerequisites and Planning Before starting, verify your current configuration and plan the new directory location: grep -A2 “dfs.namenode.name.dir” $HADOOP_HOME/etc/hadoop/hdfs-site.xml The new directory should be…
Resizing a single image is straightforward, but processing dozens or hundreds requires automation. ImageMagick’s convert command (or the modern magick command) paired with a bash loop is the standard approach for batch image resizing on Linux. Using ImageMagick ImageMagick remains the most reliable tool for this task. Here’s a practical script to resize all images…
When you SSH to a server and see the warning below, your SSH client has detected that the server’s host key doesn’t match what’s stored locally: @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ @ WARNING: REMOTE HOST IDENTIFICATION HAS CHANGED! @ @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ IT IS POSSIBLE THAT SOMEONE IS DOING SOMETHING NASTY! Someone could be eavesdropping on you right now (man-in-the-middle attack)!…
GNU Screen’s status bar (called the hardstatus line) displays useful information about your current session—which window you’re on, the time, hostname, and more. It’s especially helpful when you’re running multiple windows and need a quick visual reference without typing commands. Basic Status Bar Setup Add these lines to your ~/.screenrc: hardstatus alwayslastline hardstatus string ‘%{=…
Distribution repositories often lag behind Calibre’s latest releases. If your package manager shows an older version and you need current features or bug fixes, installing directly from the official installer is straightforward. Official installer method Calibre provides a dedicated Linux installer that works across distributions. This is the recommended approach for staying current: sudo -v…
When your host machine connects to the network via WiFi, giving QEMU guests network access requires a different approach than traditional bridged networking. Since wireless interfaces typically don’t support bridge mode, you’ll need to use NAT (Network Address Translation) or a tap device with masquerading. Understanding your options NAT mode is the simplest approach—the host…
When processing application logs (like Hadoop/log4j output), you often need to extract entries from a specific time window. This is especially common in automated routines that run periodically—for example, pulling the last 4 hours of logs every 4 hours via cron. Log format considerations Most application logs follow a consistent timestamp format. For example, log4j…
Understanding the difference between reliability, durability, and availability is critical when designing or operating distributed storage systems like HDFS, Ceph, or cloud object storage. These terms are often confused, but they address distinct concerns. Durability Durability answers: If the system fails completely, will my data survive? Durability is about persistence to non-volatile storage. Data is…
When you need to extract a value from a list that should contain exactly one element, pattern matching is the idiomatic way to handle it in functional languages. The error “unbound value c” typically occurs when you try to use a variable that wasn’t properly bound through pattern matching. OCaml Pattern Matching In OCaml, use…
The .mbox format stores email messages as plain text in a single file, with each message separated by a “From ” line. If you have archived emails or need to work with mailbox exports, here are the practical ways to read and manipulate them on Linux. Using Thunderbird Thunderbird remains a solid option for viewing…