After installing vim from MacPorts I noticed that neither the arrow keys or backspace work as expected.

The solution is simple, create a ~/.vimrc file with the following contents:

Reload vim and voila, insert mode behaves as I’d expect it to.

Note that you don’t really need to set nocompatible, simply having a .vimrc file in your home directory does this automatically. I’ve left it in to remember the solution in future.

Thanks to the linux-journal blog and the vim tips wiki for the answers.

After a number of unsuccessful attempts to get dban on a USB stick using unetbootin, I found the Universal USB Installer instead. This appears to do a better job, making a bootable installation from the latest preview build of dban.

It helps to remove the USB stick after boot, during the “Waiting for USB devices to register” stage. This is an issue with how dban recognises mass storage on some motherboards, rather than a problem with the USB boot. Unfortunately it doesn’t work properly in WINE right now, presumably because it can’t find the right drives.

Further instructions are available on the pendrivelinux.com homepage, but it is simple enough that you wont need them.

I have just uploaded the latest version of my Eagle library, containing a bunch of new parts.  These include:

• Maxim DS1337 RTC
• RFM12 radio module (with pins)
• Keystone CR123A battery holder
• Memsic MXC6202 I2C accelerometer
• ON Semi CAT6219 500mA LDO regulator
• Texas Instruments TSL2560 / TSL2561 light-to-digital converter
• Maxim DS620 Low-Voltage, ±0.5°C Accuracy thermometer

The library can be found on the Electronics page.