GNU fu

Sometimes I wonder about GNU projects, the app projects, not the base GNU
software that Linux uses. I have Dia (diagram editor) on my old box, and
I use it to draw rough-and-ready (i.e. not strict) UML diagrams, so that I
can recall what the hell I did months ago.

So now I want it on my Arch box. It's in AUR (for projects not officially part
of Arch Linux), but I decide to get it from GNOME's GitHub repo.
I go through the steps in BUILD.md, get all dependencies installed, then do a
ninja command. The build fails, not finding std::string::starts_with() and
std::span.

Hmmm, those require C++20. But the project's meson.build specifies C 17 and
C++17. So I have to dick around and figure out how to specify 20.  It then
builds fine.

But "ninja install" installs it in the place where the dia executable was
created.  Just to keep moving, I make a soft link, /usr/local/bin/dia.v

Now I run the thing, create a diagram, create a class, then double click to
edit it. Nothing.  Did dia freeze? No, the dialog comes up after awhile.
It's just slow as hell the first time the edit dialog for an alement is opened.

Why so slow?  Sometimes I wonder about GNU projects.

Anyway, I can use it on Arch now.

Also sometimes I think Gtk fscks up the window manager (on the old box).
Yesterday I had to go to a virtual console to kill dia.

By the way, I like Bellhaven's Scottish Ale:

--
Q: Why don't Scotsmen ever have coffee the way they like it?
A: Well, they like it with two lumps of sugar.  If they drink
it at home, they only take one, and if they drink it while
visiting, they always take three.