Author: Dave Farquhar

Lionel’s connection to Marx

Dave Farquhar Toy trains
Lionel’s connection to Marx

Lionel and Marx were fierce competitors in the postwar, mid-century time period. But since old train tooling never dies, it just changes hands, Lionel’s connection to Marx has grown over the years. Especially in recent years.

Old Marx products found their way into Lionel’s product line when Lionel temporarily took over K-Line. But then, in 2019, some of Marx’s HO scale tooling found its way into Lionel’s revived HO product line.

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Confirmed vs potential vulnerabilities in Qualys

Dave Farquhar security
Confirmed vs potential vulnerabilities in Qualys

When you’re looking at a vulnerability scan, you may find several types of findings on the report. Two of them are confirmed and potential vulnerabilities. Let’s take a look at confirmed vs potential vulnerabilities in Qualys.

Potential vulnerabilities are incomplete, in that they show an indication of vulnerability, but not enough for Qualys to confirm it. Confirmed vulnerabilities are more reliable, as Qualys was able to pinpoint a vulnerable file or setting on the system. In some scan results, Qualys refers to potential vulnerabilities as “practice.” As far as Qualys is concerned, practice and potential are interchangeable terms.

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How long does a power supply last?

Dave Farquhar Hardware
How long does a power supply last?

People ask me all the time what the most important part of a computer is, after they find out I work with computers. And I always surprise them when I say the power supply. Your computer is only as stable and reliable as the power supply. But how long does a power supply last? Of course it depends.

A good name-brand power supply can last many years. Cheap power supplies, in my experience, typically start giving you trouble within three years. Paying double for a power supply doesn’t necessarily guarantee double the life expectancy, but the odds tend to be pretty good.

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Using an NE2000 network card in DOS

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing
Using an NE2000 network card in DOS

If you have a mystery ISA network card with no recognizable brand name on it, chances are it’s an NE2000 clone of some sort. These cards were common in their day, but difficult to get working if you don’t have the original disks and manual. Here are some tips for using an NE2000 network card in DOS without them.

And these tips are helpful for using other cards in DOS as well, especially what you can do with the card once you have it up and running.

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Remove rust with vinegar

Dave Farquhar DIY, Toy trains

I’ve discussed rust removal before, but some people swear by removing rust with vinegar. I never had much luck with it, but I’ve learned the secret.

The secret to rust removal with vinegar is to rinse the part thoroughly with hot water, immediately. If you don’t rinse it fast enough, or with hot enough water, the part will flash rust. But if you rinse correctly, vinegar is a cheap and effective way to remove rust from toys, old tools, and anything else made of iron or steel. I mostly use it on toy train parts but anyone who deals with anything old needs this trick.

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Is USB blocking misguided security?

Dave Farquhar security

Blocking USB ports on corporate computers certainly is an inconvenience. But it’s something many companies do in the name of security. The question is, is USB blocking misguided security? Does it solve a problem, or just create others?

There are serious security concerns with USB devices, besides the danger of people copying huge troves of corporate data onto a USB stick and taking that information with them. That’s why many companies, and the government, limit what you can use USB for, or sometimes block it completely.

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Matching Commodore breadbin beige

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing
Matching Commodore breadbin beige

I don’t think it’s any great secret that RAL 1019 is the color of the Commodore 64 breadbin and its matching peripherals. But what can you do in parts of the world where you can’t find RAL 1019 in spray cans? Here are some other tips for matching Commodore breadbin beige.

There are several reasons to want to match old computer colors. Maybe you want to paint a damaged case, or maybe you’re building a peripheral for it and want a vintage color for it. Fortunately there are some off-the-shelf matches that are fairly close, including in the Krylon Fusion line, which bond well to plastic.

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Does the Nintendo Switch have Ethernet?

Dave Farquhar Hardware
Does the Nintendo Switch have Ethernet?

Last Christmas we bought our sons a Nintendo Switch. And of course we put it in the room of the house that has the worst wi-fi reception. So I quickly looked for an Ethernet port. When I discovered the Nintendo Switch does not have Ethernet built in, I looked for solutions.

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Gotek floppy emulator for retro PCs

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing
Gotek floppy emulator for retro PCs

Gotek floppy emulators are a useful piece of hardware, especially for retro PCs. The problem is they suffer from poor (or entirely missing) instructions. If you mess around with old PCs a lot, a Gotek is a must-have.

A Gotek floppy emulator is a drop-in replacement for 3.5-inch floppy drives that reads images off a USB flash drive. The Gotek can cycle through 1000 disk images on the USB drive by pressing buttons on its front panel. Goteks are really designed and marketed with vintage music equipment in mind, but they benefit old PCs too, for exactly the same reason.

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Does a Lionel train have to run in a circular loop?

Dave Farquhar Toy trains
Does a Lionel train have to run in a circular loop?

Electrically speaking, there’s no reason a Lionel train has to run in a circular loop. A circular loop is the simplest way to set one up. But if you want another shape, you can do it.

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