Day 31 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

Last day of May but its not the last of FreeBSD for me!

I copied the contents of /home from my Linux desktop to my FreeBSD testing laptop, which is now my main machine starting today. There is a lot more to explore.

Onward!

Day 30 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

Life intervened so not much FreeBSD time today. I did add a clipboard manager (ClipIt) to Openbox, though.

Day 29 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

FreeBSD does not include a graphical user interface in its base system. This is how I install and set up the X Window System (X11) before installing my preferred window manager or desktop environment:

https://www.dwarmstrong.org/freebsd-x11/

Day 28 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

During the FreeBSD install on my Thinkpad, I chose to use ethernet for networking and it was configured successfully.

After first boot into the system, I manually configure the wireless adapter for an additional networking option. Finally, I combine the ethernet and wireless interfaces into a virtual interface to provide failover network capability should one of the interfaces become unavailable.

https://www.dwarmstrong.org/freebsd-network-laptop/

Day 27 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

Use the `backlight(8)` and `mixer(8)` tools included with the base system to set screen brightness and control the sound card. I also create keyboard shortcuts for the commands in the (Openbox) window manager configuration.

https://www.dwarmstrong.org/freebsd-brightness-sound/

Day 26 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

FreeBSD + Openbox =

Day 25 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

When I installed FreeBSD on my Thinkpad, I enabled `powerd(8)` for power management features that would be especially useful on a laptop. However, for laptops using an Intel CPU, this utility has been superseded by the `hwpstate_intel(4)` driver.

https://www.dwarmstrong.org/freebsd-laptop-power-management/

Day 24 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

Configure SSH and create the necessary SSH keys that will be used to secure access to remote devices.

https://www.dwarmstrong.org/freebsd-ssh-keys/

Day 23 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

I like to shorten the boot delay and customize the login with a different last login notification and a Daily Dose of Wisdom delivered courtesy of fortune(6) piped to cowsay(1).

https://www.dwarmstrong.org/customize-login-freebsd/

Day 22 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

After the first boot of my new FreeBSD installation, these are some extra steps I like to make right away to get a system off to a good start!

https://www.dwarmstrong.org/freebsd-after-install/

Day 21 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

Starting to write up my notes about my FreeBSD adventure on the Thinkpad:

https://www.dwarmstrong.org/freebsd-laptop/

Day 20 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

Quiet day today. FreeBSD just works.

Day 19 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

[SOLVED]

Customizing my boot/login process a bit. These links are very helpful:

* @sgharms https://stevengharms.com/longform/my-first-freebsd/installation/part-5-boot-ergonomics/
* @vermaden https://vermaden.wordpress.com/2018/03/29/freebsd-desktop-part-1-simplified-boot/

However, I haven't been able to silence console noise after login. Even after creating `/var/log/console.log` with proper permissions, enable logging in `/etc/syslog.conf`, and rebooting. Now the system writes to the log AND continues to display messages on the console.

Hmm....

Day 18 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

Tuning my system configuration a bit. My laptop has an Intel CPU that supports the `hwpstate_intel` driver, so I disabled `powerd_enable="YES"` in my `rc.conf`.

https://docs.freebsd.org/en/books/handbook/config/#hwpstate_intel

Day 17 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

Set up `~/.xinitrc` to load some configs and start some programs:

https://gitlab.com/dwarmstrong/dotfiles/-/blob/master/.xinitrc?ref_type=heads

Day 16 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

I'm happy with how my Openbox config is coming together! This time around I'm not using any kind of panel/taskbar and have set windows to open maximized by default:

https://gitlab.com/dwarmstrong/dotfiles/-/tree/master/.config/openbox?ref_type=heads

Next up: further configure `.xinitrc` to run some helper applications at `startx`.

Onward!

Day 15 of #31DaysOfFreeBSD

Enabled "tap to click" on my touchpad by creating `/usr/local/etc/X11/xorg.conf.d/touchpad.conf`: 1 finger = left-click, 2 finger = right-click, 3-finger = middle-click.

One snag, though, is that middle-clicking registers as multiple clicks. Haven't got that one working correctly yet. This is happening on a Thinkpad T480s.