As shown in the screenshot, while learning PCB design in AD recently, I discovered that besides DRC checks, AD also has a HealthCheck feature (the version used when writing this was 25.8.1). Several warnings appeared: Self-Intersecting Regions、Micro-Segments (Board)、Micro-Segments (Copper). This record mainly focuses on a strange issue encountered while fixing the first and third problems.
First, by clicking the issues listed:
You can locate the PCB area where the problem was detected. In my board, it pointed to this location:
While learning AD24 recently, I discovered an issue:
As shown in the screenshot, AD’s DRC check reported a violation: “[Minimum Solder Mask Sliver Constraint Violation] IP2369_EVM.PcbDoc Advanced PCB Minimum Solder Mask Sliver Constraint: (0.0998mm (3.929mil) < 0.1mm (3.937mil)) Between Pad U1-21 (52.014mm, 25.561mm) on Top Layer And Pad U1-22 (52.014mm, 25.961mm) on Top Layer [Top Solder] Mask Sliver [0.1mm]”
After investigating and manually calculating pad size, solder mask expansion, and pad spacing:
First, the background: a GitLab project that references other projects within the same GitLab instance using submodules. The .gitmodules file looks something like this:
This structure works fine during local development. Of course, the local GitLab account has access permissions to the dependent submodule repositories. When setting up the CI build environment, using GitLab’s docker runner on Linux works without issues. However, on macOS using the shell runner, I encountered errors when initializing submodules:
I have three Xiaomi Temperature and Humidity Sensor 2 devices at home, connected to the Xiaomi Smart Plug 2 Bluetooth gateway. They are small and convenient, allowing me to check home temperature and humidity anytime on my phone. Recently, after replacing the battery in one of them, a strange problem appeared: the device could be seen in the Mi Home app, and it showed as connected to the Bluetooth gateway, but no temperature or humidity data could be retrieved. Entering the device details page gave no response, only prompting “Turn on Bluetooth.” If I enabled phone Bluetooth, it would connect very slowly to the device and eventually retrieve data, but the process was sluggish, unlike before when the gateway connection was instant. This also meant that when away from home, I could no longer see real‑time data from this sensor (the gateway page in the app still showed the sensor connected with full signal). Later I checked the firmware and found it could be upgraded to the latest “0130.” I upgraded (the process was also very slow, probably due to Bluetooth transfer), but the problem remained! Searching online, I found people suggesting a reset, which brings us to today’s topic. The reset design of this Xiaomi sensor is rather unusual. Most online reset methods say this:
This Cherrykeyboard was bought by the blogger in April 2022 during a flash sale on JD.com, a red‑switch RGBkeyboard, and has been used at the office ever since. In today’s era of domestic mechanical keyboards flooding the market, the MX2.0S doesn’t seem to have much special apart from the “Cherry” name. However, after using it for years I still feel it’s quite good, especially the layout. The shortcut keys in the upper right corner—calculator, media play, previous track, next track—are very practical. By comparison, the layout of the Durgod K310 RGB at home (which I bought earlier than the Cherry) is not as convenient.
Recently I noticed that the backlight of the PAUSE, PAGE UP, and C keys stayed constantly red. At first I thought it was a misconfigured lighting effect, so I tried installing the driver (yes, I had never installed Cherry’s driver in all these years), and also tried FN+PAUSE reset. None of this worked, so I realized it might be a hardware fault (the photo below is blurry but you can barely see the three keys stuck on red 😂).
On April 26, 2026, another group of LEDs showed the same fault, so I added a clearer photo of the symptom (the durability of MX2.0S LEDs is really poor):
During the October holiday, I took the keyboard home to disassemble and study it (and cleaned it up—after 3 years the ABS keycaps of frequently used keys are shiny with wear, and the inside was full of “treasures” accumulated over the years 😂).
