Author: Dave Farquhar

D-Link vs TP-Link

Dave Farquhar Servers and Networking , , , ,
D-Link vs TP-Link

If you’re looking for the pros and cons of D-Link vs TP-Link, I have experience with both and I’m glad to share it.

D-Link is a well established brand. Founded in 1986, it started doing business as D-Link in 1994. It’s been around a long time. If you’ve been involved with computers for any length of time, you’ve probably heard of it.

I don’t blame you if you’ve never heard of TP-Link. They were founded in 1996 but if you were buying their stuff before 2005, you’re well ahead of me.

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Find capitalized words in Libreoffice or Openoffice

Dave Farquhar Software ,

Sometimes you need a way to find capitalized words in Libreoffice or Openoffice. This can make it easier to figure out if the word needed to be capitalized, in the case of a poorly written or edited document. Then you can make a decision whether the capitalization was appropriate.

Another time you would need to find capitalized words in Openoffice or Libreoffice would be when you’re creating an index. I’m sure there are others.

It’s easier than it sounds.
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Best wireless security mode

Dave Farquhar security , , , ,
Best wireless security mode

What is the best wireless security mode? There are only four choices, and only one worth using, WPA2. But there are some other settings you have to use in order to make WPA2 secure.

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1:48 scale cars and trucks for O scale

Dave Farquhar model railroading
1:48 scale cars and trucks for O scale

Scale-oriented O scale enthusiasts often bemoan the lack of true 1:48 O scale vehicles, as in 1/48 scale cars and trucks, to go with their O scale trains. Often they go so far as to call 1:48 scale autos non-existent. That’s not entirely the case. There are 1:48 scale vehicles out there. Finding them requires some creativity and imagination, but the payoff is a layout that has vehicles few others have discovered.

I know of more than 20 1:48 scale vehicles suitable for O scale train layouts. They fall into two broad categories: ready made diecast vehicles, and plastic 1/48 scale model cars and trucks in kit form, which require assembly. The model kits tend to be costlier but allow a greater level of detail. Not only that, some of the model kits are 4-door sedans, the perfect ordinary car. For the realism-craving hi rail or 2-rail enthusiast, they are hard to resist.

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Is DD-WRT safe?

Dave Farquhar DD-WRT, security
Is DD-WRT safe?

As a security professional, “is DD-WRT safe?” is a question I hear a lot. While there are options that I think are safer, I’m perfectly fine with admitting I use DD-WRT myself. I know a lot of other people like me do as well.

One thing is almost certain: DD-WRT is safer than what shipped on your router from the factory.

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Boot a Lenovo Ideapad 100 from USB

Dave Farquhar Hardware ,
Boot a Lenovo Ideapad 100 from USB

If you need to boot a Lenovo Ideapad 100 from USB, there’s an easy way to do it. Here’s how.

The Lenovo boot menu appears when you hit the Novo button on the side of the machine. Here’s how to find the Novo button and how to push it, since it’s usually recessed.

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Hipwell Manufacturing Co. of Pittsburgh

Dave Farquhar Toy trains , , , , , , , ,
Hipwell Manufacturing Co. of Pittsburgh

The Hipwell Manufacturing Co. of Pittsburgh was the inventor of the single-cell battery and a venerable producer of flashlights. As recently as 2002, Hipwell produced 2 million flashlights in the United States.

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Tin buildings for train layouts

Dave Farquhar Toy trains , , , , , , , , , ,
Tin buildings for train layouts

When it comes to trains, I prefer older ones made of tin, rather than plastic. And I like tin buildings too. Any time I open a magazine featuring someone’s train layouts, the buildings all look the same. I want something a little different, so I look for tin buildings to go with my tin trains.

Many companies through the years made food containers with printing on them that look like buildings. The tins tend to be about six inches wide, around 8 inches tall, and two inches deep. They tend to resemble the two-story commercial buildings you used to see in downtowns, with a storefront on the first story and offices or apartments on the second floor.

You can use these tins to put together a very timeless commercial district for your train layout. If you know what to look for, you can find coffee shops, bakeries, candy stores, florists, and plenty of other stores to make your town a nice place to live and work. And the buildings usually aren’t terribly expensive, either.

In this post, I’ll cover buildings made after 1970. For pre-1970 buildings, see Vintage Tin Litho Buildings.

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Vintage tin litho buildings

Dave Farquhar Toy trains , , , , , , , , , , ,
Vintage tin litho buildings

Years ago, I decided I wanted to take a different approach with my trains. I heard about a guy in Springfield who has a traditional toy train layout with no plastic on it. I wanted to see if I could do something similar.

At the time, information about this approach was rare. So I’ve collected here what I know about tin buildings made prior to 1970 (the approximate end of the postwar era). You won’t find everything you want in pre-1970 buildings, so if you need something more modern to fill in the gaps, see my other post tin buildings for train layouts.

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How to grade baseball cards

Dave Farquhar Baseball

I frequently get asked how to grade baseball cards. I really think this is a job best left to a professional, but I’ve collected the guidelines below that professionals use.

Some people assign numeric values to these grades, and sometimes you’ll find mid grades. For example, if a card is a little too good for one grade but falls just short of the next grade up, a grader might add a plus to the grade, grading it EX-MT+.

Note that printing and cutting quality go into the grade, not just wear. Even if it’s not the owner’s fault, many cards fall short of mint.

Also keep in mind there’s no kind of curve. Even if the card is from 1889, if it has flaws, it’s not mint. Even if the card is brand new out of the pack, if it has flaws, it’s not mint.

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