Author: Dave Farquhar

How to answer where you see yourself in five years

Dave Farquhar Careers
How to answer where you see yourself in five years

Where do you see yourself in five years? What’s your five year plan? These are variations of a common job interview question. I don’t like that question. Here’s some advice for interviewees on how to answer that question. And some advice for interviewers on why that’s a bad question and what you might ask instead.

Read more

Windows 10 black screen after hibernate: Try this

Dave Farquhar Windows
Windows 10 black screen after hibernate: Try this

Occasionally when I close the lid on my laptop, it doesn’t come back. The hard drive light is blinking and it shows signs of life like the caps lock light lighting when I hit the key. But the screen remains black and I can’t do anything. Before you power down and risk losing work, try this if you experience the Windows 10 black screen after hibernate.

The magic key sequence is Win+Ctrl+Shift+B to fix the Windows 10 black screen after hibernate. It resets the graphics driver and usually brings the machine back to life from the black screen of death.

Read more

Diamond Stars baseball cards

Dave Farquhar Baseball
Diamond Stars baseball cards

The Diamond Stars baseball cards set is one of my favorite baseball card sets of all time. At first glance it looks like a Goudey copycat, but it’s a good set in its own right. And it’s a pre-war set that’s just a bit off the beaten path.

The 1934-36 Diamond Stars was a set of 108 baseball cards issued by National Chicle, of Cambridge, Mass. Jefferson Burdick gave it the designation of R327.

Read more

What are Cherry Red switches?

Dave Farquhar Hardware
What are Cherry Red switches?

If you’re shopping around for mechanical keyboards, you’ve undoubtedly heard a lot of weird brand names and, of all things, colors. It can get confusing. One popular choice is the Cherry MX Red switch. So what are Cherry Red switches? Are Cherry Red switches loud? Are Cherry Red switches quiet? And are Cherry Red switches good for typing? I’ve been using them for more than three years, so let’s dive into these questions and more.

Read more

Apple IIc power supply pinout

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing
Apple IIc power supply pinout

I recently needed a new power supply for an Apple IIc to replace a missing one. It’s easy to adapt a modern laptop power brick to work with an Apple IIc. All you need is a pinout. Here’s an Apple IIc power supply pinout.

Read more

What comes after cloud?

Dave Farquhar Hardware
What comes after cloud?

It’s probably not news to you that the hot trend in computing in 2021 is moving from on-premise computing to cloud computing. And that’s been a hot trend for several years. But what comes after cloud? What will replace cloud? It’s possible to predict what it will look like–just not the specifics.

Read more

CPU fan error troubleshooting

Dave Farquhar Hardware
CPU fan error troubleshooting

My friend was building a new system. And like many new builds when you haven’t done one in a while, not everything went as smoothly as it could have. Here’s how he solved a phantom CPU fan error.

Read more

Iterate over a CSV in Python and Pandas

Dave Farquhar security
Iterate over a CSV in Python and Pandas

I frequently get data in CSV or Excel format, which I then have to use to deploy a vulnerability management solution like Tenable or Qualys. I use Pandas to process this data, which usually involves iterating each row of the dataframe in Pandas. It abuses Pandas. But it works. Yes, it’s a hack. I don’t care.

Read more

How to make color match wood putty

Dave Farquhar DIY
How to make color match wood putty

Sometimes we end up with deep scratches and gouges in wood that we need to repair. The solution is wood putty, but what if the wood putty doesn’t match? Here’s how to make color match wood putty, and/or make wood putty match stain.

Read more

Qualys vulnerability vs discovery scan

Dave Farquhar security
Qualys vulnerability vs discovery scan

One of my most frequent topics of discussion in my time as a vulnerability management architect was the question of a Qualys vulnerability vs discovery scan. It’s especially confusing because Qualys is completely silent on the topic. There’s a reason for that. Let’s talk about the types of Qualys scans and what they can do for you.

Officially, Qualys discovery scans don’t exist. That said, you can implement something very close to what Qualys’ competitors call a discovery scan, and reap numerous benefits from it.

Read more