Category Archives: computers

computers: 18 years of ThinkPads

Posted on 2021-06-28 by skierpage

(from my series “lovingly preparing old electronics for reuse, only for them to be dumped in a pile of E-waste”) IBM originally came up with the “ThinkPad” name for its pen-operated “slate” personal computer running the PenPoint operating system. That … Continue reading →

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computers: bye to desktop

Posted on 2021-04-30 by skierpage

I realized I hadn’t powered on my old desktop PC for years. It’s an HP Pavilion I bought second-hand for $100 a decade ago, which had more features than my custom-built $3000 Falcon Northwest aluminum behemoth from 2004. I upgraded … Continue reading →

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playing Pong with your mind vs. William Gibson

Posted on 2021-04-12 by skierpage

Ars Technica has an appropriately level-headed article about Elon Musk’s Neuralink company getting a monkey to play Pong with its mind, which reminds people of William Gibson: the old Cyberpunk fan in me dreams of cyberdecks: devices without screens or … Continue reading →

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computers: my legendary Herman-Miller Levity standing desk

Posted on 2018-04-06 by skierpage

For months I tried to give my old adjustable desk to a museum, or at least to someone who has a use for it. It’s the Levity by Herman-Miller, an impressive piece of late 90s office design. It goes from … Continue reading →

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software: checking Android 5.1 (Lollipop) memory consumption

Posted on 2017-01-06 by skierpage

I wanted an Android tablet and bought the Lenovo Yoga Tab 3 Pro for its great hardware – kickstand, long battery life, Dolby Atmos sound, comfortable to hold. But its performance is abysmal. Firefox simply exits if you browse most web … Continue reading →

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computers: power supply fix

Posted on 2015-01-05 by skierpage

I fiddled around with computers for five days straight over Christmas. I knew upgrading a laptop to Windows 7 and adding memory would be a chore, but I also had to repair my desktop. On the right is the mighty … Continue reading →

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computers: trying to update HTC Evo 4G

Posted on 2014-07-01 by skierpage

I bought an excellent Moto X phone, just before Motorola cut the price of the wooden back 75%, and shortly before Google sold them to Lenovo. That leaves me with a 4-year old HTC Evo 4G, at the time absolutely … Continue reading →

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computers: William Gibson and brain interfaces

Posted on 2013-11-04 by skierpage

Slashdot breathlessly summarizes a rather weak project combining virtual reality headset and a brainwave reading device with the editorial. Consumer level brain computer interfaces are still primitive these days, but it doesn’t seem too far off that we’ll have virtual … Continue reading →

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skiing: better gloves

Posted on 2012-03-26 by skierpage

My replacement Swany Flexor FX-15 gloves were terrible, so I got new gloves, as did a ski buddy. They’re both Gore-Tex with leather palms and fingers. They both have leashes so you can’t lose a glove. The Dakine Rover gloves … Continue reading →

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software: how Live CDs can close the deal

Posted on 2011-06-09 by skierpage

I tried out the some new operating systems by booting them off a USB flash drive, including Fedora 15. Fedora 15 seemed to work fine on my hardware and looked promising, but it wasn’t dramatically better in a few fumbling … Continue reading →

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