The Silicon Underground

Marx train set #26259 from Montgomery Ward

Dave Farquhar — Thu, 23 Mar 2023 13:03:03 +0000

Marx train set #26259 is a somewhat unusual set, dating to the mid 1950s. Marx sold it through Montgomery Ward, and it is something of a transition set. The cars didn’t exactly match the locomotive and tender. The locomotive and tender A Marx 999 locomotive led off the set, with a plastic Santa Fe tender… Read More »Marx train set #26259 from Montgomery Ward

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Fast Copy: Best and fastest copier for Windows?

Dave Farquhar — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 13:03:55 +0000

People sure have strong feelings on their Windows copy utilities. Each of the command line utilities has their own strengths and weaknesses. But when it comes to copying with the GUI, a lot of times we just settle for Windows Explorer. Fast Copy is a utility that provides GUI ease of use with the power… Read More »Fast Copy: Best and fastest copier for Windows?

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Atari Jaguar won’t power on? Try this

Dave Farquhar — Tue, 21 Mar 2023 13:03:19 +0000

The most common problem with an Atari Jaguar is not being able to power it on. Usually this is due to user error rather than a hardware fault, so here’s how to quickly fix the problem. First things first: the Atari Jaguar power adapter Before proceeding to my quick fix, I want you to check… Read More »Atari Jaguar won’t power on? Try this

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FreeDOS on physical hardware

Dave Farquhar — Mon, 20 Mar 2023 13:03:04 +0000

Vintage computing has gotten expensive. One way to enjoy the vintage computing experience on a budget is to install FreeDOS on aging physical hardware that isn’t quite old enough to be collectible, building what some people call a time machine. I had someone ask me on Mastodon to walk them through the process. The goal… Read More »FreeDOS on physical hardware

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Marx 556 caboose

Dave Farquhar — Thu, 16 Mar 2023 13:03:54 +0000

The Marx 556 caboose was a staple of Marx’s 6-inch line, running from 1937 to 1952. All the variants are minor and only the lighted version is rare or valuable. The 556 is a good car for toy train operators, and also makes a nice Christmas train or display piece because of its color choices.… Read More »Marx 556 caboose

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Fixing a sticky Teac 5.25 inch floppy drive

Dave Farquhar — Wed, 15 Mar 2023 13:03:26 +0000

I have a Teac FD-55BV 5.25″ 360K floppy drive for my Tandy 1000EX. Teac drives tend to be very reliable, but this one had one problem. The spindle clamp would stick when I opened the lever and tried to remove the disk. Here’s how I fix a sticky floppy drive, and you can too. Cleaning… Read More »Fixing a sticky Teac 5.25 inch floppy drive

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What manual testing is in security

Dave Farquhar — Tue, 14 Mar 2023 13:03:41 +0000

The SANS vulnerability management maturity model has an entire section on manual testing. That may not be a phrase you hear very often because there are several types of manual tests. So what is manual testing in security? Manual testing is a form of security testing, namely, looking for security vulnerabilities in a non-automated or… Read More »What manual testing is in security

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WordPress Jetpack stats won’t load? Try this

Dave Farquhar — Mon, 13 Mar 2023 13:03:01 +0000

With much fanfare, Automattic released a new version of Jetpack Stats for WordPress in March 2023. And sometimes the page doesn’t load, giving the spinny ring of death. Wait all day if you want, you’ll just get the ring. Hitting F5 to reload the page will almost always cause this to happen, as will your… Read More »WordPress Jetpack stats won’t load? Try this

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Marx 400 locomotive

Dave Farquhar — Thu, 09 Mar 2023 14:03:10 +0000

The Marx 400 locomotive was Marx’s entry level plastic locomotive that it sold in inexpensive electric sets. Introduced in 1952 as a windup and in an electric version in 1953, the 400 was an 0-4-0 steam locomotive made of plastic. Initially, it supplemented pressed tin engines, although plastic eventually overtook metal in the most inexpensive… Read More »Marx 400 locomotive

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Is a smartphone a computer?

Dave Farquhar — Wed, 08 Mar 2023 14:03:07 +0000

Is a smartphone a computer? The short answer is yes. The reason why I answer that way is a little bit more complicated, but a smartphone meets every definition of a computer. Why a smartphone is a computer A smartphone is a computer, and we are not talking in the simplest sense, like an Arduino.… Read More »Is a smartphone a computer?

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