Author: Dave Farquhar

How does Roku make money?

Dave Farquhar Video
How does Roku make money?

Roku sells streaming devices that plug into your TV. It doesn’t charge a subscription beyond what the streaming providers charge, and the devices aren’t all that expensive. So how does Roku make money? Let’s take a look.

Roku, it turns out, has several revenue streams it’s able to tap. As more and more people seek alternatives to pay TV, it’s likely to grow.

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Commodore 64 clones

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing
Commodore 64 clones

The subject of clones was always controversial in Commodore circles, even during Commodore’s heyday. There were no true Commodore 64 clones in the 1980s and 1990s. Why? And would it have made a difference?

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Snagit alternative

Dave Farquhar Windows

I don’t do as many screen captures as I used to, but when I need to do a screen capture, I need to do one badly. Snagit is the most common program for this, but its cost can be hard to justify. What’s better than a Snagit alternative? How about a Snagit free alternative?

I’ve got you covered.

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Dollar store Christmas village scale

Dave Farquhar Model Building
Dollar store Christmas village scale

Dollar Tree stores sell a Christmas village they call Windham Heights by Cobblestone Corners. This village is very inexpensive and its low cost made it popular. If you’re a Cobblestone Corners fan and wonder about scale so you can accessorize it, here’s what you need to know about dollar store Christmas village scale.

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Dollar Tree Christmas village

Dave Farquhar Model Building
Dollar Tree Christmas village

The Dollar Tree Christmas village is a nice alternative for people who find the big name brands too expensive or too large for their available space. You can also use it in conjunction with those other competitors. Here’s what you need to know.

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Vinyl floor tiles separating

Dave Farquhar DIY
Vinyl floor tiles separating

A common problem with peel and stick vinyl tiles is separating. If you experience vinyl floor tiles separating, here’s how to keep it from happening again. And you may be able to fix it. If you can still get tiles to match, you even have several options for fixing it, depending on what you’re comfortable with.

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K-Line trains

Dave Farquhar Toy trains , , , ,
K-Line trains

K-Line was a manufacturer of O gauge electric trains and accessories from approximately 1980 to 2010. Its scrappy, value-oriented approach to the hobby endeared K-Line trains to many of its customers.

K-Line Electric Trains and Lionel tended to target one another in their advertisements. They referred to one another as “Brand K” and “Brand L.” In 2005, the rivalry turned to litigation, which eventually resulted in K-Line admitting wrongdoing, going out of business, and Lionel licensing and selling products under the K-Line name from 2006 to 2010.

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Texas Instruments Home Computer: TI-99/4A

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing
Texas Instruments Home Computer: TI-99/4A

Texas Instruments was supposed to dominate the home computer market in the 1980s. And on paper they had a good product. But things didn’t work out the way they were supposed to for the Texas Instruments home computer, the TI-99/4A. And that’s why you probably don’t hear as much about it as you’d think you would.

TI entered the personal computer market in 1979 and had some success in the early 1980s. But Apple’s former management literally doesn’t remember competing with it. Yet for a couple million people in the late 70s and early 80s, the TI provided their first experience with a home computer, and any home computer, however flawed, was something special then. So it provided some fond memories for people of a certain age.

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Upload faster than download? Try this

Dave Farquhar ISPs
Upload faster than download? Try this

Is your upload faster than your download with your Internet connection? This is a fairly obscure problem that seems to have started happening again. Here’s how to test to see if you’re actually having a problem, and how to fix it.

If your upload speed is slightly faster than your download speed, it’s not worth worrying about. On a symmetric Internet connection where the two are supposed to be the same, I expect to see them within about 10 percent of one another, and if download slightly outpaces upload, it’s not hurting anything. But if upload is faster when it’s supposed to be slower, something weird is going on.

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Can you use Roku without wifi?

Dave Farquhar Video
Can you use Roku without wifi?

Can you use Roku without wifi? In some cases you can, although depending on the circumstances, a Roku can certainly be less useful without wifi. Here’s what models work without wifi and what they can do for you.

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