Flowing Fix: Controlling multiple computers with one keyboard and mouse

 Barrier

A virtual KVM switch, allowing for local network control of multiple computers (running either MS Windows, macOS, or Linux) using a single keyboard and mouse. Barrier is a fork of  the Synergy 1.9 codebase (more info on Barrier: https://github.com/debauchee/barrier)

Download link: https://github.com/debauchee/barrier/tags

Note: a common issue is not creating an SSL cert on Windows (via  https://github.com/debauchee/barrier/issues/231)

First, install openssl (either with Git https://git-scm.com/  or standalone https://www.openssl.org/ ), then:

cd %LOCALAPPDATA%\Barrier\SSL

mkdir Fingerprints

openssl req -x509 -nodes -days 365 -subj /CN=Barrier -newkey rsa:4096 -keyout Barrier.pem -out Barrier.pem

openssl x509 -fingerprint -sha1 -noout -in Barrier.pem > Fingerprints\Local.txt

If you use WSL, I recommend you to do it from there, replacing %LOCALAPPDATA% with your Windows path.

If you use WSL, I recommend you to do it from there, replacing %LOCALAPPDATA% with your Windows path.

Flowing Fix: Including Computations in LaTeX

Below are two options for embedding coding into LaTeX files that can be executed and update values in the LaTeX file.

• PythonTeX (Python code inside of LaTeX files)journal paper: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1749-4699/8/1/014010

• MATSweave (using Octave or MATLAB code inside of LaTeX files) webpage: http://staffwww.dcs.shef.ac.uk/people/N.Lawrence/matweave.html

Tracker: Video Analysis and Modeling Tool

Tracker: Video Analysis and Modeling Tool is free Java-based software for Windows, Mac OSX, and Linux
For more information: http://www.cabrillo.edu/~dbrown/tracker/

KMLCSV Converter

Useful application to convert CSV to KML files and KML to CSV files:

The KMLCSV Converter is available for macOS, Windows, and Linux
https://choonchernlim.com/kmlcsv/

Flowing Fix: Create Application Shortcut in Chrome

1) Select the "Customize and control Chrome Chrome" button at the upper-right of the Chrome window (denoted by three vertical dots).

2) Select "More Tools"

3) Select "Create shortcut"

Figure denoting the first 3 steps to Create Shortcut in Chrome

4) Edit the "Shortcut name"

5) Check "Open as window"

6) Press "Create" button (a new window should open and an associated icon should appear in either the MS Windows taskbar or the Dock on the macOS)

7) Right-click on that icon (on the Taskbar or Dock) and
     - on MS Windows, select "Pin to taskbar"
     - on macOS, select "Options" >> "Keep in Dock"




Reference:
https://www.sorendam.com/create-application-shortcut-chrome-mac/

Flowing Fix: Use Spotlight to locate file location

To use Spotlight to locate the location of a file on the Mac, do the following:

1) Open Spotlight, either by one of the following:

     - press CMD+Spacebar 

        or 

      - click the "magnifying glass" in the upper right of the screen

2) Type in the file name (or part of the name) that you are looking for

3) Click on the item in the spotlight list 

4) Press CMD   (at this point you should see a path box appear)

5) If you press CMD+Enter when an item is selected, a new Finder window will open showing the selected file in the folder location.

Flowing Fix: Quickly share a large file via your browser

At some point in time, you might find you need to transfer a large file. There are numerous file-sharing services (Dropbox, Google Drive, Box.com, Amazon Drive, etc.) however if you need to quickly send a file without uploading it to a central server first, File Pizza delivers.

File Pizza is a peer-to-peer file transfer via browser (nothing needs to be installed and it just works), the only caveat is since the transfer is directly between sender and receiver (no middle server for the file to be uploaded to), both sender and receiver need to be online at the same time. It is very convenient for one-off file shares, not for a persistent link that people can download at any time.

File Pizza (your files delivered)
https://file.pizza/



More details via the https://github.com/kern/filepizza website:
"Using WebRTC, FilePizza eliminates the initial upload step required by other web-based file sharing services. When senders initialize a transfer, they receive a "tempalink" they can distribute to recipients. Upon visiting this link, recipients' browsers connect directly to the sender’s browser and may begin downloading the selected file. Because data is never stored in an intermediary server, the transfer is fast, private, and secure."

Flowing Fix: Installing garamondx font (and other non free fonts) on Mac

To install the Garamondx font on TexLive distribution for Mac (not include in TexLive utility) do the following:

1) download the getnonfreefonts script from https://tug.org/fonts/getnonfreefonts/install-getnonfreefonts  and save it to an arbitrary folder on the desktop

2) Open terminal and cd into the folder where you saved the getnonfreefonts script

3) run the script via terminal line by entering:  sudo texlua install-getnonfreefonts

4) check the install by typing:  getnonfreefonts --help

5) check the status of fonts on the system by typing:  getnonfreefonts -l

6) install garamondx font by typing:  getnonfreefonts garamondx

7) check install status by typing: getnonfreefonts -l

More detailed instructions can be found at the two links below:
http://tex.stackexchange.com/questions/110057/how-to-install-garamondx-font-properly-dont-know-how-to-create-bitmap-font-for

http://tug.org/fonts/getnonfreefonts/

Flowing Fix: How do I get those data points off an image? [revisited]

A while back, we posted how to get data off an image by running digitizing software on your local system (see the link to the prior post below). However, if you have limited admin access to install/run the software (or don't want to install software), WebPlotDigitizer is a web-based tool that runs directly your web browser https://automeris.io/WebPlotDigitizer/ that allows you to extract data from plots, images, and maps

Link to prior post:
https://digitalspigot.blogspot.com/2011/10/flowing-fix-how-do-i-get-those-data.html

Flowing Fix: Generating QRcodes

Quick Response Codes (QR codes) are a type of two-dimensional barcode (or matrix barcode) which allows for encoding of information that can be read rapidly. For more about QR codes see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QR_code

Websites to generate QR codes:

• http://www.dmcinfo.com/Blog/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/296/The-DMC-vCard-MeCARD-QR-Code-Generator-ie-Business-Cards-for-Geeks.aspx

• http://keremerkan.net/qr-code-and-2d-code-generator/

• https://www.qr-code-generator.com/

• http://www.qrhacker.com/

• http://www.javascripter.net/faq/rgbtohex.htm

• http://2d-code.co.uk/qr-code-generators

LaTeX can generate QR codes: 

To enable this capability in LaTeX, include the qrcode package (https://ctan.org/pkg/qrcode?lang=en) A tutorial with simple example code (see Example 11) can be seen at https://www.hydro-perturbations.com/help-files/latex-quick-examples


iOS apps for QR codes:
http://next140.com/iphone-qr-code-scanner-roundup/


Android apps for QR codes:
http://www.dmcinfo.com/Blog/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/296/The-DMC-vCard-MeCARD-QR-Code-Generator-ie-Business-Cards-for-Geeks.aspx

Computing the optimal road trips

If you have a trip will multiple stops and you are having trouble finding an optimal route here are some links to help you.

Optimizing routes (web interactivity):
1) MapQuest [26 locations]: https://www.mapquest.com/routeplanner
2) RouteXL[20 locations for free]: https://www.routexl.com/


For the more adventurous (coding required):
Genetic Algorithm approach:
from Randal Olson' blog which uses Python with Google Maps:
http://www.randalolson.com/2016/07/30/the-optimal-u-s-national-parks-centennial-road-trip/

Using Gurobi solver: 
from Nathan Brixius's blog which uses Python

https://nathanbrixius.wordpress.com/2016/06/09/computing-optimal-road-trips-using-operations-research/

Using Concorde solver, the world’s best Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP) solver:

from Nathan Brixius's blog which uses Python

https://nathanbrixius.wordpress.com/2016/06/16/finding-optimal-state-capitol-tours-on-the-cloud-with-neos/

Flowing Fix: Mathpix Snipping Tool

There are times when you need to replicate an equation or block of text from a PDF file. If the PDF file was converted from a typed file, chances are that the text in the PDF can be selected. However, for equations (and if the PDF is image-based), you were out of luck, until now. Mathpix Snipping Tool is perfect for capturing a screenshot of the equation or text and automatically converts it to LaTeX. It is almost magical, capable of converting typed and handwritten information to LaTeX.
Download Mathpix Snipping Tool for MS Windows, macOS, and Ubuntu from https://mathpix.com/

Flowing Fix: Getting file paths on macOS Mojave

Prerequisite:
The Path Bar needs to be enabled.
To enable, in the Finder menubar at the top left, click the following:

Finder >> View >> Show Path Bar

1) Once the Path Bar is enabled, right-click on a folder item in the Path Bar and select "copy xxxx as Pathname" where xxxx is the item selected in the Path Bar

Reference:

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/8578939

Flowing Fix: Embedding LaTeX equations inside Inkscape drawing

To embed a LaTeX equation inside Inkscape, there is built in support in Inkscape version 0.48 (and higher). On the menu bar: Extensions >> Render >> LaTeX Formula

via

http://wiki.inkscape.org/wiki/index.php/LaTeX
How to use LaTeX with Inkscape (MAC OS X) - TeX - LaTeX Stack Exchange:

Flowing Fix: Embedding math equations and symbols in Inkscape

You can embed equations and math symbols using LaTeX. In Inkscape versions 0.48(and above) this option was introduced through the top menu: Extensions  >> Render >> LaTeX

However, before you can see the LaTeX option in the Render menu on MS Windows machines, you have to have the following installed:

1.  Install LaTeX: MikTeX  http://miktex.org/ (for Windows)
2. Ghostscript: http://ghostscript.com/download
3. Install pstoedit (with the SVG plugin):  https://sourceforge.net/projects/pstoedit/
4. Then update "path environmental variables" to include the pstoedit folder (e.g., C:\Program Files\pstoedit) OR move the pstoedit folder to C:\Program Files\Inkscape

via
http://wiki.inkscape.org/wiki/index.php/LaTeX
http://tex.stackexchange.com/questions/257147/how-to-use-latex-with-inkscape-mac-os-x


Another option to easily add Greek letters within Inkscape using Unicode
html version: http://www.physics.nmt.edu/~raymond/software/howtos/greekscape.xhtml
pdf version: http://www.physics.nmt.edu/~raymond/software/howtos/greekscape.pdf



------- More about Inkscape below------------

Inkscape (http://www.inkscape.org) is a free and open source professional vector graphics editor for MS Windows, Mac OS X and Linux.

For tutorials on Inkscape:
http://inkscape.org/en/learn/tutorials/
http://pigux.com/deviant/source/tutorials/InkscapeTutorial.pdf

Other learning resources:
 http://inkscape.org/en/learn/

Why pursue a PhD?

We often get a lot of questions regarding the PhD degree, and why someone would pursue one.  Here are some link that we thought would be very beneficial:

Why pursue a PhD: http://flowingdata.com/2014/10/07/why-to-pursue-a-phd

The illustrated guide to a Ph.D.: http://matt.might.net/articles/phd-school-in-pictures

Flowing Fix: Biber fails with error missing "recode_xdata.xml"

In short, the cache files are corrupted and need to be removed. Delete the cache folder with the files and compile the document again.

You can find the cache folder path by looking in .blg file or by using the command:  biber --cache

For more information see instructions at the following link:
http://tex.stackexchange.com/questions/140814/biblatex-biber-fails-with-a-strange-error-about-missing-recode-data-xml-file

Flowing Fix: View RAW images natively in Windows

Mac users have the ability to view RAW images natively in OS X.  However, Windows users can have the same ability by installing the  Microsoft Camera Codec Pack (http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=26829)

For more details on viewing and editing RAW images natively in Windows see this article:
http://www.techradar.com/us/news/photography-video-capture/cameras/how-to-view-and-edit-raw-natively-in-windows-984141

CUDA over Remote Desktop

On Windows, it is not possible to use CUDA over Remote Desktop on the primary video card.  If you have more than one graphics card that is CUDA capable, you can execute the following command to set the driver mode of the secondary card as TCC (Tesla Compute Cluster) mode.  For example, open a command prompt as an administrator, then:

cd C:\Program Files\NVIDIA Corporation\NVSMI

nvidia-smi -i 1 -dm 0

Where -i 1 should be the index of the card (0 is primary).  -dm 0 sets the mode to be TCC.

See http://stackoverflow.com/q/12304082/724351.

Flowing Fix: Interpolation in MS Excel using XonGrid Interpolation AddIn

MS Excel is a very useful software program and it has many built in functions. We often hear, " How do I interpolate in Excel, where is the interpolation function?"  As many functions as Excel has, it still lacks a simple function to perform quick interpolations. Yet, it should be stated that it is possible to pair up functions (e.g., using forecast, offset, and match functions) to basically performance the interpolation as illustrated here:
http://www.blueleafsoftware.com/Products/Dagra/LinearInterpolationExcel.php

However, this method is not as intuitive as having a simple build in function. There is an XLL file that you can add-in to Excel entitled XlXtrFun ( http://www.xlxtrfun.com/XlXtrFun/XlXtrFun.htm ), however it is not compatible with Excel 2007 or higher versions. Furthermore, at the time of this post it is not possible to download the zipped file from the above website, which makes XlXtrFun a non-viable option.

Which brings us to the motivation for this post:

XonGrid Interpolation AddIn (http://xongrid.sourceforge.net/) is a freely available add-in for Excel which works for both the 32 and 64 bit versions of Excel and is also compatible with the older and newer versions of Excel (e.g., Excel 2003, 2007, 2013) unlike XlXtrFun. While XlXtrFun has many more functions than XonGrid, if you are looking for Excel interpolation add-in functions, XonGrid is perfect for you.

As a nice bonus to improve computations if you are doing many simulations interpolations of the same basic dataset, the XonGrid interpolation functions can be used as part of array functions, as mentioned in http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/excel-help/introducing-array-formulas-in-excel-HA001087290.aspx. Instead of using the sum function mentioned in the above article, you can use the interp1d function as part of the XonGrid package. Be sure to fix the data range with the $ characters, so that when the array function is populated  in each cell, the data range is not changed, only the xo value change which will corresponded to the desired yo value that you find.