Mmmm attachments?

[infryq]

Yesterday for work I fixed the broken CUDA upgrade and also applied it to the next machine in line. A student asked about compute resources for an upcoming paper deadline, so I made sure she had access, in the process fixing some broken python configurations that were missing pip and virtualenv.

It was super warm out, so during a break in the rain I dug some raspberries out of the lawn and potted them up for F. Easier than I expected.

For the White I started in on the throat plate and bobbin access cover. They are both nickel-plated and need slightly more delicate handling. There’s some old tape adhesive on the throat plate that’s being stubborn but I’ll get it. I asked facebook about a part I’ve been looking for that would make it reasonable to cast my own knobs out of resin: a D-profile tube to use as a shaft insert. Turns out it is not remotely a standard part, which is a shame. In the process though I found a manufacturer for knob clips that perform the same/similar purpose, and while I was explaining the A/B problem dad offered to just turn me some knobs out of aluminum. I sent him a set of barebones specs and he sent me a pic last night — the results are gorgeous, and even fit the sortof mid-century transitional vibe of the machine. I’m blown away. Once they’re on the shafts I can mark the positions for the numbers and they’ll be better than when the machine was new.

After dinner we did the crossword, then I watched DS9, had a snack, and went to sleep. Dreamt of time travel, floating, shape-shifting, author meet and greets, pen names, middle school, and a fun computer program using midi melodies to draw pictures and teach math.

COVID-19 update: the first case in the CMU community has been confirmed, a student who came back from spring break. Thankfully I haven’t been on campus since the sixth, so no worries there, but basically the pandemic is proceeding as expected. P is exhausted from remote teaching all week, and may need to reconfigure expectations and requirements so that everyone including him will make it to the end of the semester without burning out.