Ben Combee
@unwiredben.combee.net
He/Him/His. Maker of neat things, member of NYC Resistor. Opinions expressed are my own, not the views of my employer, @Roku. Can't evolve into Vespiquen
Also posting on Mastodon at https://nycr.social/@unwiredben
Also posting on Mastodon at https://nycr.social/@unwiredben
Pinned
Ben Combee
@unwiredben.combee.net
· Jun 20
Overwhelmed by the cool art on display at @crowdsupply.bsky.social Teardown this year. Here's a thread on the great stuff on display, updated randomly.
Advice for future versions of me: the reason crosstools-ng is forcing glibc 2.28 on you is that your build VM doesn't have python installed. Newer glibc 2.29 builds require python 3.4+ and the Kconfig-based system is quietly saving you from the humiliation of enduring a useful error message.
January 6, 2026 at 10:02 PM
Advice for future versions of me: the reason crosstools-ng is forcing glibc 2.28 on you is that your build VM doesn't have python installed. Newer glibc 2.29 builds require python 3.4+ and the Kconfig-based system is quietly saving you from the humiliation of enduring a useful error message.
Hey, #atx/#austin people. Did you cut the cord, but miss the public access and government channels that you had on cable? They're still available for #Roku users: Check out these channels from the channel store.
January 6, 2026 at 5:22 PM
Hey, #atx/#austin people. Did you cut the cord, but miss the public access and government channels that you had on cable? They're still available for #Roku users: Check out these channels from the channel store.
Just before Christmas, I finally put up the amazing Fibbinocci spiral flower light sculpture that I got from @evilgeniuslabs.org. Visitors to the house have raved about its patterns and how it adds a pleasant accent to our family den.
January 3, 2026 at 5:25 PM
Just before Christmas, I finally put up the amazing Fibbinocci spiral flower light sculpture that I got from @evilgeniuslabs.org. Visitors to the house have raved about its patterns and how it adds a pleasant accent to our family den.
I’m disgusted that our administration has launched an unjustified and unauthorized war on the country of Venezuela. End this now and impeach all those involved in this endeavor.
January 3, 2026 at 7:03 AM
I’m disgusted that our administration has launched an unjustified and unauthorized war on the country of Venezuela. End this now and impeach all those involved in this endeavor.
New years eve early bowling with the kids; the K-Pop singers dance while the PA plays the jazzy version of Katy Perry's "I Kissed a Girl".
January 1, 2026 at 1:31 AM
New years eve early bowling with the kids; the K-Pop singers dance while the PA plays the jazzy version of Katy Perry's "I Kissed a Girl".
Walking in downtown Chattanooga, my wife, after helping the family cross an intersection: "I've gotten awards for my street crossing ability." One beat later, me: "Those were jaywalking tickets, dear". Everyone erupts laughing.
December 29, 2025 at 8:55 PM
Walking in downtown Chattanooga, my wife, after helping the family cross an intersection: "I've gotten awards for my street crossing ability." One beat later, me: "Those were jaywalking tickets, dear". Everyone erupts laughing.
How's the post-Christmas trip going? Our kittie peed in our largest bag while it was being packed, and that bag also lost its zipper slides while in transit so won't close now. 2 of 5 travellers have some kind of non-COVID/flu crud. And it's 73F outside in north Georgia. It's great!
December 27, 2025 at 5:50 PM
How's the post-Christmas trip going? Our kittie peed in our largest bag while it was being packed, and that bag also lost its zipper slides while in transit so won't close now. 2 of 5 travellers have some kind of non-COVID/flu crud. And it's 73F outside in north Georgia. It's great!
I need to support some users building on ARM64 Macs. They're on most recent 15.7 Mac OS X. They need to run GCC 14 toolchains built for x64 Linux. I've got a setup with colima running an aarch64 VM (12GB, 4 CPUs) using a Ubuntu x64 Docker container via Rosetta 2. 1/4
December 23, 2025 at 6:37 AM
I need to support some users building on ARM64 Macs. They're on most recent 15.7 Mac OS X. They need to run GCC 14 toolchains built for x64 Linux. I've got a setup with colima running an aarch64 VM (12GB, 4 CPUs) using a Ubuntu x64 Docker container via Rosetta 2. 1/4
I saw the picket line outside the Starbucks at 45th and Lamar and fully support their fight for fair pay.
3⃣0⃣ days on strike - this is officially the longest national ULP strike in Starbucks' history.
Listen to our striking baristas in Austin, TX: Don't cross our picket line! Stop buying Starbucks. #NoContractNoCoffee
Listen to our striking baristas in Austin, TX: Don't cross our picket line! Stop buying Starbucks. #NoContractNoCoffee
December 13, 2025 at 6:17 PM
I saw the picket line outside the Starbucks at 45th and Lamar and fully support their fight for fair pay.
My friend Glenn Meter made a great presentation on Wednesday about the Travis County chapter of Amateur Radio Emergency Services (ARES) along with other ways we communicate in emergencies in central Texas, item 5 on the city's Technology Commission meeting agenda. #hamradio #atx
Dec 04, 2025 Special Technology Commission - Austin, TX
austintx.new.swagit.com
December 5, 2025 at 9:51 PM
I know I'm shouting into the cloud, but Zoom keeps adding new unwanted features and pushing them into the UI. They now seem to want to take on Slack and Teams with persistent chat that extend pass meetings and have desktop notifications.
December 4, 2025 at 7:12 PM
I know I'm shouting into the cloud, but Zoom keeps adding new unwanted features and pushing them into the UI. They now seem to want to take on Slack and Teams with persistent chat that extend pass meetings and have desktop notifications.
Reposted by Ben Combee
📈 Here's how much money Los Camp! make from streaming...
On the occasion of #SpotifyWrapped, we thought now would be a good time to share some cold, hard stats about how much money our band makes from streaming royalties.
📖 tinyurl.com/LCwrapped
On the occasion of #SpotifyWrapped, we thought now would be a good time to share some cold, hard stats about how much money our band makes from streaming royalties.
📖 tinyurl.com/LCwrapped
December 3, 2025 at 7:57 PM
📈 Here's how much money Los Camp! make from streaming...
On the occasion of #SpotifyWrapped, we thought now would be a good time to share some cold, hard stats about how much money our band makes from streaming royalties.
📖 tinyurl.com/LCwrapped
On the occasion of #SpotifyWrapped, we thought now would be a good time to share some cold, hard stats about how much money our band makes from streaming royalties.
📖 tinyurl.com/LCwrapped
Reposted by Ben Combee
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone
Remember to thank farmworkers
Remember to thank farmworkers
November 27, 2025 at 7:13 PM
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone
Remember to thank farmworkers
Remember to thank farmworkers
Keep passing this poster at my office and thinking, man, that guy has a lot of machetes.
November 21, 2025 at 4:11 PM
Keep passing this poster at my office and thinking, man, that guy has a lot of machetes.
Reposted by Ben Combee
Rebecca Heineman passed today.
She was a unique talent, to understate things. Anyone could see that in her long list of accomplishments.
But we are not just our catalogs of retail products. She was a force of nature, a light in the darkness.
This is an unimaginable sadness.
She was a unique talent, to understate things. Anyone could see that in her long list of accomplishments.
But we are not just our catalogs of retail products. She was a force of nature, a light in the darkness.
This is an unimaginable sadness.
November 18, 2025 at 3:53 AM
Rebecca Heineman passed today.
She was a unique talent, to understate things. Anyone could see that in her long list of accomplishments.
But we are not just our catalogs of retail products. She was a force of nature, a light in the darkness.
This is an unimaginable sadness.
She was a unique talent, to understate things. Anyone could see that in her long list of accomplishments.
But we are not just our catalogs of retail products. She was a force of nature, a light in the darkness.
This is an unimaginable sadness.
My heart breaks at the news of the closing of Koriente, the Korean diner on 7th Street here in #atx. I loved their food and my wife and I had our first date there.
Casual Asian restaurant in downtown Austin closes after 21 years
Longtime Asian-inspired restaurant Koriente has closed, according to a message on its website. Besides losing a trustworthy local option downtown, locals are saying goodbye a stronghold against corpor...
austin.culturemap.com
November 18, 2025 at 12:10 AM
My heart breaks at the news of the closing of Koriente, the Korean diner on 7th Street here in #atx. I loved their food and my wife and I had our first date there.
🎵 It's a Starbucks strike for me,
Start drinking locally,
Think where you get your tea.
It's a Starbucks strike. 🎵
(Roughly to the tune of "Hard Knock Life" from the musical "Annie")
Start drinking locally,
Think where you get your tea.
It's a Starbucks strike. 🎵
(Roughly to the tune of "Hard Knock Life" from the musical "Annie")
As of this morning, Starbucks workers across the country are officially ON STRIKE. And we're prepared for this to become the biggest and longest ULP strike in Starbucks history.
Say #NoContractNoCoffee with us: DON'T BUY STARBUCKS for the duration of our open-ended ULP strike! $SBUX
Say #NoContractNoCoffee with us: DON'T BUY STARBUCKS for the duration of our open-ended ULP strike! $SBUX
November 13, 2025 at 1:04 PM
🎵 It's a Starbucks strike for me,
Start drinking locally,
Think where you get your tea.
It's a Starbucks strike. 🎵
(Roughly to the tune of "Hard Knock Life" from the musical "Annie")
Start drinking locally,
Think where you get your tea.
It's a Starbucks strike. 🎵
(Roughly to the tune of "Hard Knock Life" from the musical "Annie")
All set up for cup and shirt sales at the Violet Crown Oktober(ish)fest here in Austin's Brentwood/Crestview neighborhoods. Details at VioletCrownCommunity.org.
November 8, 2025 at 5:27 PM
All set up for cup and shirt sales at the Violet Crown Oktober(ish)fest here in Austin's Brentwood/Crestview neighborhoods. Details at VioletCrownCommunity.org.
Need funding to make "Sub Pop Demon Hunters", where the surviving members of Soundgarden and Nirvana join up with The Shins, Sleater-Kinney, The Postal Service, and Iron and Wine to save the Pacific Northwest from doom using the power of music and flannel.
November 7, 2025 at 7:03 PM
Need funding to make "Sub Pop Demon Hunters", where the surviving members of Soundgarden and Nirvana join up with The Shins, Sleater-Kinney, The Postal Service, and Iron and Wine to save the Pacific Northwest from doom using the power of music and flannel.
What an amazing Lego-made homage to something I'm happy to have helped shared with the world, Roku City. Thanks jtsandman45!
I Built ROKU CITY Out of LEGO...
YouTube video by jtsandman45
youtu.be
November 5, 2025 at 9:19 PM
What an amazing Lego-made homage to something I'm happy to have helped shared with the world, Roku City. Thanks jtsandman45!
Big congrats to my home state! Let's keep the momentum for 2026!
CONFIRMED: Georgia Democrats have won their first statewide elections for non-federal offices since *2006.*
The two Dem challengers, Alicia Johnson and Peter Hubbard, have ousted two GOP Republican commissioners on the state's utility commission.
The two Dem challengers, Alicia Johnson and Peter Hubbard, have ousted two GOP Republican commissioners on the state's utility commission.
November 5, 2025 at 3:00 AM
Big congrats to my home state! Let's keep the momentum for 2026!
Reposted by Ben Combee
Read about the City's response to the Federal shutdown, with resources for food access, utility bill relief, and healthcare services in our latest newsletter.
👉 tr.ee/GCNSaR
👉 tr.ee/GCNSaR
November 4, 2025 at 7:03 PM
Read about the City's response to the Federal shutdown, with resources for food access, utility bill relief, and healthcare services in our latest newsletter.
👉 tr.ee/GCNSaR
👉 tr.ee/GCNSaR
Just learned about this #retrocomputing book Kickstarter that still needs some backers to meet its goal. It's the story of a small computer company that designed ahead-of-its-time products and then disappeared just as the personal computer revolution was getting started.
Go Computer Now! – The Story of Sphere Computers
A book telling the extraordinary story of Sphere, a 1970s Utah personal computer maker far ahead of its time—until its sudden collapse.
www.kickstarter.com
November 3, 2025 at 4:41 PM
Just learned about this #retrocomputing book Kickstarter that still needs some backers to meet its goal. It's the story of a small computer company that designed ahead-of-its-time products and then disappeared just as the personal computer revolution was getting started.
Fired up a GitHub workspace and managed to get my old Ravine Despoiler watchface project built and deployed to the #pebble Duo 2. It still needs work before I can post on the store, but I could reuse code that I wrote for my Arduboy port to get the bomb animation going.
November 3, 2025 at 3:36 AM
Fired up a GitHub workspace and managed to get my old Ravine Despoiler watchface project built and deployed to the #pebble Duo 2. It still needs work before I can post on the store, but I could reuse code that I wrote for my Arduboy port to get the bomb animation going.