do GSI roms still contain google binaries (play store, play services, etc…) or is it similar to a AOSP rom where its just a bare android image

Yes. That’s to say they can be either depending on how the ROM was built. All of the GSI ROM builders I’ve worked with usually have multiple releases of the same build with different configurations: root, no root, with Google services (often MicroG), without Google services, combinations of both, etc.

To my understanding, GSI ROMs are basically just the “userland” portion of a full ROM. Basically they use the stock/existing kernel, drivers, etc but replace the rest of the system that runs on top of it. If memory serves, they’re possible due to Project Treble. Sadly, they still require an unlocked bootloader to install, so they’re not a total fix-all.

They’re also very generic generic images (hence the “G” in the term). They’re not optimized for any specific device and can be hit-or-miss feature wise depending on the device. If you’re already reading about a specific device on XDA forums, then you’ll probably be able to see what works and what doesn’t.

TL;DR: Running a GSI ROM is like upgrading to a newer Linux distro but without upgrading the kernel.

“Does it piss you off when Google/whatever does [blank]? Yeah, me too. So I run my own versions to not have to deal with that crap. Would you like me to set you up an account on my stuff?”

My X1 Carbon does now. But it used to drain to empty after a day or two even if it was turned all the way off. Drove me crazy.

The problem ended up being the always-on USB setting in the BIOS. For some reason, even with nothing connected, that would drain the battery until it was completely flat. Once I turned that off, it’ll sleep for weeks like you said.

OP, maybe check the BIOS settings for “Always on USB” or similar and disable that?

Not that I’d own a smart fridge, but if I did and they started shoving ads on it, it’d look like this later that day:

Underappreciated top

That was my nickname in college.

I think the point of 11h is to achieve that kind of range without directional antennas. Basically as a higher-bandwidth version of LoRa.

I think I’m just gonna get some Pi Zeros + cameras and just roll my own. Probably use the NoIR versions and some cheap IR illuminators. Feed those into Zoneminder.

Bonus points if I can find some old CCTV cameras, gut them, and fit the pi camera to those optics.

That’s a real hero move, and I appreciate it.

Commenting so I can remember to check back for any suggestions. I’ve basically run into this problem:

It’s like phone manufacturers have run out of ideas and will do anything except stop making tall, skinny phones. I miss horizontal pixels and not needing a step ladder to reach the top of the screen, dammit!

Most of the last mile fiber network is passive (doesn’t require active electronics to pass the signal like DOCSIS/cable internet or ADSL).

Cable and DSL typically have the equivalent of UPSs in their neighborhood nodes, but they often go unmaintained.

That’s basically what EFI booting does.

Initramfs’s main purpose is to load enough of a system to be able to load/boot the kernel and everything else from the hard disk. It’s also used for more complex boot scenarios such as loading LUKS and providing a password prompt if the root partition is encrypted.

• Does it have USB-C video out?
• Do you plan to run any custom ROMs / Can it run custom ROMs?

Yeah, for sure. I tend to use WebDAV with that to connect to my Nextcloud more than the actual Nextcloud app. Works great.

Assuming you mean SSH for file transfer? Material Files supports SFTP, and I use it to connect via SSH to my machines to transfer files.

I understand why, but I still hate it. Thankfully there’s Grand Theft Focus

Damn Small Linux (Knoppix-based) which was the gateway drug to Fedora Core 4 on an old Pentium III that was lying arouind.

Which is more horrifying? Kerneld or PulseLinux?

As long as Lennart Poettering isn’t anywhere near the line of succession lol.

Thanks. That’s already set to grayscale out of the box. I guess what confused me was that screenshots were in color (when I sent them to my PC to look at) but on my old Lineage 16/Android 9 device with “reading mode” enabled, the screenshots were in grayscale.

Apparently screenshots are no longer affected by those settings in later releases.