Category: Life

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Kensington LD5400T is a discontinued, large and heavy Thunderbolt 3 dock. After powering it on, at first there were issues with video output that made me think it’s defective. After some testing, I found it has below limitations but still usable:

  1. Its TB-3 /USB-C port cannot output to USB-C monitors and needs a USB-C to HDMI or DisplayPort adapter to connect to monitors. (Instead, the Elgato TB3 dock I’m also using can directly output to USB-C monitors, using a USB-C to USB-C cable).
  2. It has one DisplayPort port (and no HDMI port), and it doesn’t support DisplayPort to HDMI adapting cables. (Again, the Elgato TB3 dock can outputs to HDMI port through such adapter cable).

So even this dock has the visually same ports as the Elgato (which has also been discontinued, but it’s light and small and has worked perfectly for two years), remember above limitations before you think it’s defective.

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I got a Whirlpool washer (Model: WTW4816FW) three years ago and it worked great, until today there was no water coming in it after I pressed “Start”. Here is the solution that worked for me (however, YMMV).

So inside the washer and besides the drum, there is a plastic bag containing a booklet of Technician Manual. Get this manual and it will tell you how to enter diagnostic mode.

  1. Dial the Cycle button to “Normal”
  2. Pull out the washer’s electric plug from the outlet, wait for 1 minute, then re-plug, and you will hear two or three “Click” sound from the washer
  3. Follow the steps in the Technician Manual (basically dial the Cycle button in clockwise/counter-clockwise for a few times, until all the LED lights are on)
  4. In diagnostics mode, I just run an Automatic Test by dialing the Cycle button to select “Spin” and then click “Start”
  5. When the Automatic Test is finished, if no problems are found, then all the LEDs are in green color. So in my case, after this test is done, the washer just works again with watering coming in!

My guess is the most important step is to just reset the washer to default mode (by unplug and wait for one minute). Again, YMMV but maybe worth a try!

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When logging into Twitter account, it may require you to receive a phone call to get the verification code. This call can be received on a Google Voice number.

  1. Enable Call forwarding, link it to your actual mobile phone number
    Settings -> Calls -> Call forwarding
  2. If you can receive the call, but the call immediately hangs off before it says the verification code, you may turn off Screen calls
    Settings -> Calls -> Screen calls

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HomePod is amazing in sound quality (except its soundstage), but Siri is unable to understand long titles of classical albums (e.g. “Bach: Brandenburg Concertos – Orchestral Suites – Violin Concertos”). My current solution is: in iTunes on Mac, Airplay the album to Homepod. The good news is, when I use Siri to adjust the volume of HomePod, the iTunes’ volume level also changes (, while the sound from other apps on my Mac can output to other devices).

Update on Apr 20: On iOS, the “Music” app can also show what is being played and select albums for HomePod.

If you have other solutions, please kindly let me know. Thanks.

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When login to the D-link camera (e.g. DSC-936L) by local web interface, the default username is “admin”, and the password is the one you set up using the app “mydlink lite” (when hinted to set up a password for this camera), not blank.

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I upgraded my TS140 with new motherboard (B250), CPU (i7-7700K), power supply, and cooler. Here are some notes:

1. Standard MicroATX MB can be installed perfectly.

2. To conveniently connect SATA cables, it’s better to choose a MB with upward (instead of sideward) SATA connectors.

3. To connect the power front panel on TS140, refer to:
(1) the pins for TS140: https://forums.lenovo.com/t5/ThinkCentre-A-E-M-S-Series/ThinkCentre-front-panel-connector-power-audio-and-USB-pinouts/td-p/190651
(2) the system panel connector (F_PANEL) on your new MB.

4. If using tower cooler, be careful of the total height. I use one with 125mm height.

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This is a free book by Timo Kiander. Below are the main points.

Foundation:

  1. Let mindset grow.
  2. Physically exercise regularly.
  3. Eat healthy foods.
  4. Sleep well:
    1. First find out how much sleep is needed by wake up without alarm

Tips:

  1. Powerful start of the day
    1. Get up early (and get to bed earlier), and spend the morning time to reach goals
  2. Optimize working rhythm
    1. e.g. work 25 min & rest 5 min; or work 90 min & rest 20 min; or work 52 min & rest 17 min.
  3. Avoid distractions
    1. Set up 2~3 time windows to handle emails and other communications; go to office early (because it is quiet);
    2. Write down ideas and thoughts on a paper for later review
  4. Plan the day in advance
    1. Write down 3 important tasks (and some lower-priority tasks); do not add new tasks

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