If you’ve tried to connect recently using bbs.shadowscope.com, apparently that has not been working at least for a couple of days. A mistake by my web hosting provider I would guess. As I have had my site here hosted with LivingDot for at least the last 15 years or so I just manage the DNS from the rather than Google Domains, which is where I recently moved my domain registration (F register.com by the way).
The BBS (and home automation stuff which is behind a VPN) is hosted at my house and I use dynamic DNS to get it. Rather than having to connect with noip and other services I have used in the post (darktech, etc) and making folks change that around, I use a CNAME record to resolve bbs.shadowscope.com to whatever DDNS service I use.
Unfortunately that CNAME disappeared from my zone records at livingdot at some point recently. Had to put in a ticket with them this morning as it wouldn’t let me add it back. Either way, if you really give a shit about the technical stuff anyway, it’s fixed now.
FYI, if you buy a Google Pixel 7 from the Google store enter “Z1M77NMTD8MEMZWQI7SNT87” at checkout and both of us will get $100 in Google Store credit
The Google Pixel 7 Pro is fairly easy to unlock, root and pass SafetyNet provided you have a little bit of knowledge on how to use the command line and aren’t afraid to permanently break your phone. While Pixels are relatively easy to recover if you do something wrong, there is always the potential to permanently brick your phone if you don’t know what you are doing.
You are going to need a few things before you can unlock and root. I am assuming you are doing this from Microsoft Windows (I am using Win 11 and everything works from there)
Unlocking your boot loader will factory reset your device. There is no way around this so make sure you have backed up everything. Once you unlock it I would suggest never relocking. If you do want to relock it, make sure not to do so until you have restored it to 100% stock. A couple of notes are that with Verizon branded versions, they can never unlock the bootloader. With T-Mobile and AT&T you can unlock once you’ve paid off the phone. You can contact your carrier and have them CARRIER unlock it (not the same as bootloader unlocking). Your best bet for unlocking and rooting phones in my opinion is to buy them direct-from-google or make sure that you are buying the carrier unlocked version if you are getting them from Amazon, Best Buy or some other vendor.
The steps to unlock the bootloader are:
Go to Android Settings – About Phone
Click on Build Number repeatedly, seven times
Go back to the main Android Settings – System – Developer Options
Toggle OEM Unlocking (you need to be connected to the internet)
Make sure you’ve unzipped the ADB/Fastboot (SDK Platform Tools) and installed the Windows USB Drivers (you will have to do this twice. Once when you first connect and again when you reboot into the bootloader.)
Navigate to the platform-tools folder
Make sure your USB cable is plugged in to your computer and to the phone.
Run the command “adb devices”
On your phone you should get an ADB prompt. Check the box to always give ADB permission and click OK
You should get a list of connected Android devices at that point. If not you may need to troubleshoot your drivers, make sure you only have one ADB device connected, etc..
Run command “adb reboot bootloader” and the phone should reboot into the android bootloader
Run command “fastboot flashing unlock”
One the phone press the volume up or down button until you see “Unlock the bootloader |>|” beside the power button.
Press the power button. The screen should go black for a moment and then near the bottom it will say “Device state: unlocked”
After this go to the steps to root your device.
Steps to Root
Unzip the Pixel 7 Pro Factory Image that you downloaded.
Copy the Magisk apk to your phone (I generally use the Downloads folder and copy all items to it.)
Copy the init_boot.img file from the unzipped factory image to your phone.
On your phone go into whatever file manager you use and install Magisk and open the app.
Toward the top click “install”
Click “Select and Patch a File” and choose the init_boot.img that you copied over from your PC.
Copy the modified init_boot.img (it will look something like magisk_patched-25200_1a2B3c.img) back over to your PC into the platform tools folder
Go back to your command prompt and run “adb reboot bootloader”
After it has rebooted into the bootloader (Fastboot mode), run the command “fastboot flash init_boot magisk_patched-25200_1a2B3c.img” (use whatever your file is actually called)
Run command “fastboot reboot”
Confirm that your phone reboots normally.
Congrats. Your phone is rooted. If you open Magisk it should show “Installed” and the version number.
Passing SafetyNet
If you want to use Google Pay and most banking apps as well as some games and media apps there are a few more steps you need to do.
Launch Magisk
Go to Magisk’s settings (the gear on the top right).
Click “Hide the Magisk app. You’ll have the chance to change the Magisk app’s name to something a little less unobtrusive such as Settings. Note that when you have it hidden or renamed you can accidentally install a new version of Magisk and neither will work at that point.
Go back to Magisk settings
Click “Systemless Hosts”. That will add a Magisk Module to Magisk, you can verify that later.
Toggle “Zygisk” on.
Toggle “Enforce DenyList” on.
Click “Configure DenyList”
Add every app that you want to deny root access and the existence of root including Google Play Store, Google Services Framework, Google Play Protect Service, Wallet, GPay, and banking apps, any streaming apps that use DRM (like Netflix), any two-factor authentication apps.
Reboot your phone.
Go back into Magisk and go to Modules at the bottom.
Confirm that Systemless Hosts is in the list, and enabled.
Install the Magisk Module Universal SafetyNet Fix that you downloaded.
Launch YASNAC and click “Run SafetyNet Attestation”. It should say: Basic Integrity: Pass., CTS profile match: Pass, Evaluation type: BASIC.
Launch Play Integrity API Checker and click “Check”
It should have green checkmarks beside MEETS_DEVICE_INTEGRITY and MEETS_BASIC_INTEGRITY.
It’s normal for MEETS_STRONG_INTEGRITY to have a red X beside it.
You don’t have to keep those last two apps installed unless you just want to.
Sometimes you will need to clear app cache AND data for apps like the Google Play Store, GPay, Wallet and others if you have opened them before all of these steps.
I’m currently using the following Magisk Modules and can cofirm they work with Android 13 on the Pixel 7 Pro (Cheetah):
If you install a Magisk module and you start bootlooping or SystemUI freezes up, restart your phone (make sure you have it connected to your PC and from the commandline run: “adb wait-for-device shell magisk –remove-modules”
That will boot you into safe mode and all your Magisk Modules will be uninstalled and you can add them back one by one to see what the issue is.
So, I received the Pixel Watch back on October 13th and figured I would post an update on it.
I got the non-LTE version as I already have five lines on my mobile and don’t currently feel like I need the added capability that it provides. I’m never anywhere without my phone, and (I am assuming) also don’t need the extra drag on the battery that LTE would cause. I could be wrong about the battery usage, just making non-technical assumptions here.
Battery life on the pixel watch so far has been about what I expected. Not great. It does seem to charge a bit faster than my Galaxy Watch 4 Classic that I have been wearing for the last 14 months. I prefer to wear the watch at night for sleep tracking. With the Watch 4, I can get through the entire day and all night then charge before I go to work and end up somewhere around 50-75% before I leave the house. With the Pixel watch I am able to do the same, but it will be at full charge before I leave the house. I haven’t done any sort of real thorough testing but basically if I am travelling it’s an absolute must to carry a charge with me. It would be nice if someone could come out with a decent watch that would last several days between charging. The charger is also proprietary and I can’t use my Samsung charge for it (or vice versa) and weirdly enough can’t use my Pixel 7’s battery share feature to charge it either.
One thing I don’t like is that I have to use a third-party app to get all my data into Google Fit. Google chose to strictly use Fitbit for the Pixel Watch, which I guess makes sense as they own fitbit, but does that make Google Fit the red-headed stepchild now? I’m not adverse to using fitbit but I would like to use the same app for both of my watches as I am not using the Pixel exclusively. I am using FitToFit to get all of my stuff into Google Fit currently. Just one more app. I already use Health Sync to get my info from Samsung Health into Fit.
The large bezels don’t bother me as much as I was afraid they would. Google did an excellent job hiding them and as I use a black watch face they aren’t very noticeable.
As far as comfort is concerned it’s more comfortable to wear than the 4 Classic. It’s a much smaller watch than I am used to (comparison pic below) so I guess that’s part of it. The band fits nicely and there is more play (rubbery lol?) than the band that came with the Samsung Watch. I don’t even notice I am wearing it most of the time.
It’s a stylish watch and I really like it, however, it’s obvious at first glance that it’s a smart watch. Having worn watches from an early age I am used to having big old clunky things (I seem to remember having a Casio calculator watch at some point) and like big watches like the 46mm Galaxy Watch 4 Classic.
The band mechanism is neat and something I would like to see other watch makers offer, but it will never happen. Rather than use a normal watch band their bands go right up to the watch. You push a button and twist, and the band comes right off. Putting one back on is just as easy. The problem that causes is that you can’t use a regular watch band with it and Google did not release any sort of adapter. That’s only a matter of time though until someone releases one.
A couple of things I don’t like are that the Pixel Watch can’t do blood pressure (the Watch 4 can) and sleep tracking. I snore a little bit and with the Samsung it can record it for me using my phone. I am sure I could use another third-party sleep tracking app for this but that’s just one more app (and I already use 200+ as it is). There is also no automatic workout tracking either. While it will continue to monitor steps, you must go in and select when you are working out. That’s one thing I got used to and really like about the Watch 4 Classic.
I am concerned about the lack of ruggedness as well. As you can tell in the size comparison above my Watch 4 is pretty beat up. I work in the service industry and my phones and any wearables get a lot of abuse from it. The lack of raised bezels is the part that concerns me as well as a lack of water resistance. That means that as soon as I walk into one of the restaurants, I must remove my watch (if I remember) in case I end up washing dishes. I do most of my walking going through my restaurants daily and I would like to be able to track it. I have gotten it wet a few times (submersed) when I have forgotten to take it off and so far, no problems with it.
Even with the cons listed above I really like this watch and will keep on using it. The only things I have to compare both the Pixel Watch and Galaxy Watch to is the Moto 360 which I wore for a couple of years until it finally died on me. Both of these are much faster and have better battery life than that one did.
Just some more recent photos of the pond. At some point soon I’ll mount a couple more of cameras from my security system and stream at least one of them on my weather station website. Nothing at the link currently, it’s just a placeholder.
If you subscribe to the site and received a bunch of notifications from old posts today, that is because I’ve just updated 50+ stories where Google Indexer found issues with some of the videos, most of which are no longer available at their original source.
I’ve deleted the offending links and corrected a couple of grammar issues.
I recently ordered and received the Peak Design Universal Adapter and finally got the chance to try it out today. I actually received it for free as I have ordered a case from them, the Everyday Case for Pixel. Due to various problems the cases are still on back order. No big deal but Peak Design was kind enough to shoot an email out with a coupon to get the adapter free as their way of an apology. Not necessary but a cool way for a company to respond.
This is what the adapter looks like on the back of the dbrand case on my Pixel 6 Pro.
I had to wait a couple of days to try it out because I had to order an Apple Magsafe charger and a 1″ ball adapter for my Ram Mount. I’ll get into the Ram Mounts at some other time but I have used a Ram Mount for the last ten years. They are the most awesome and sturdy mounts you can buy. Depending on what you need it can get a bit pricey but definitely worth it. This is actually my second Ram Mount, my first one was stolen when someone broke into my car three or four years ago.
Here’s the Magsafe charger attached to my Ram Mount.
I’m not sure how well these should work as I have never played with Magsafe anymore, I’m an Android guy and unless you purchase third party products, obviously Apple doesn’t make anything for me. Seems like a great idea. Wireless charging and a magnet. Great idea, not such great results, at least in my case. First speedbump I went over the phone slid off and cracked my screen protector. Oh well, it’s back to the X-Grip. I linked to a version of it above (by the way, those are affiliate links so if you click on them I might get a buck or something). Here’s the picture of my X-Grip below.
I still like the idea of the wireless charger. What I may do is take the magsafe charger out of the adapter I bought and glue or tape it into the X-Grip. Looks like there is just enough room to accommodate my phone and the charger.
My only concern is that while I received the Peak Design Universal Adapter for free (not including the magsafe charger, USB-C to USB adapter and 1″ ball adapter I bought) the Everyday Case I am waiting on was $40. That’s as much as I paid for the dbrand case, which is much better looking. If it falls off the magsafe charger like this adapter did, it will be headed for the trash bin. I lie, it’ll go into one of my desk drawers with cases from my last 15 or so phones until I can find someone that needs it 🙂
I also had to remove my Spigen Ring, which I really like, from the back of the case in order to install the Peak Design adapter. I may be prying that off real soon if I can do it without ripping the skin off the case. Time to break out the heat gun…
I managed to register both shadowscope.net and shadowscope.us; Both should forward here (along with richiemiles.com, which I have owned for several years. the subdomains which redirect to my BBS that’s hosted here, should also forward correctly. You can now access the board through:
bbs.shadowscope.com, bbs.shadowscope.net, bbs.shadowscope.us and shadowscope.noip.us
I have also upgraded my weather station and will be putting it back online soon. With the move to the new town it’s been down for a couple of months. I will be back online at villaricaweather.com and villaricaweather.us once it’s up. Full weather report, forecasts, and a couple of webcams.
Should be transparent but I am moving my last two domains (the original shadowscope.com and another one) over to Google Domains from register.com; It’s cheaper and it’s a hell of a lot easier to manage domains through Google than it is register.com
Apparently my web provider decided to restore something from backup and when they did it messed up my domain forwarding that I set up in the zone editor. When I asked them to restore all they did was add a 301 forwarding rule, which pretty much does nothing unless you are accessing stuff with a web browser.
Between the move and holidays and work I haven’t had the time to fix. Since it had been so long since I added the CNAME in my zone editor I forgot how to do it lol. Looked that up (Thanks Google) and fixed it late this past week. You should now be able to access the BBS however you were doing it before.
Regardless, should the forwarding go down you can always access it at shadowscope.noip.us which is where bbs.shadowscope.com is forwarded to.
Seems like the only time I post at all the last couple of years is when I’ve updated the site.
I’ve temporarily changed from the comic based theme here to retrogeek. Not sure if I like this or not but as most of my stuff the last couple of years has to do with the BBS or Home Automation it fits.
Cleaned up the categories. While all of the crime categories are gone, the posts are still here and I am planning on leaving them. If you find that you have been mentioned in a post and want to request it be taken down shoot me a message using the support link above. I can guarantee that if you were convicted of murder, rape, child abuse, etc…you’re going to be here forever. The rest, however, I will consider on a case by case basis. If you come in here demanding it be taken down or threatening me, fuck you then. Use your manners.
I also got rid of the sidebar links. The majority of the blogs that I used to frequent have been gone for over a decade now and the couple that I still visit I have in my own bookmarks.
Had a few minutes of downtime earlier. Just finished adding another network drive as I was running out of space for my Plex server. I now have 11 terabytes of network space (4 of that is free). Should be good for another couple of years.
Going to take the BBS down again later this evening for an update to the Mystic software as well.
