David L. Farquhar on technology old and new, computer security, and more
I saw some questions come up on a model railroading forum about soldering, and I guess there’s a lot of confusing information out there about it. I’ve been soldering for 30 years, so hopefully I can clear up the common questions about soldering for model railroaders.
The main reason you find conflicting information about soldering is the application. If you’re soldering wires to the track, the advice for soldering sheet metal together to scratchbuild cars will be very different.
The iconic Nintendo NES controller tends to be fairly reliable, because it’s a simple design. It’s much less prone to breaking than, say, the joysticks that came with an Atari 2600. But the controllers can still wear down over the decades. Fortunately it’s easy to give them a tuneup. Here’s how to fix NES controllers yourself, with simple tools and household cleaners.
Retro seems to be one of those words whose meaning has changed as I’ve gotten older. It’s a vague term that means it’s not old enough to be an antique, and not even old enough to be vintage. But how old is retro?
Retro refers to the recent past. That’s a little vague but generally means it’s old and probably obsolete, but probably less than 20 years old.
What is LVP flooring? LVP stands for luxury vinyl plank, a type of snap-together floating floor that competes with laminate flooring. It combines the durability of vinyl with the convenience and appearance of laminate. It’s an especially good choice in kitchens and bathrooms where moisture may be present.
There’s not much that goes wrong with an Atari 2600. Virtually every problem I’ve ever found with them has to do with the electrical path. That means the power supply, the power switch, or the voltage regulator. Outside of those three parts, I’ve never seen a problem with one. Let’s talk about the Atari 2600 voltage regulator and troubleshooting the rest of the internal electrical path.
American Flyer produced track in a variety of gauges and radii, but if you’re asking about American Flyer track radius, you probably mean its S gauge track.
The standard radius for American Flyer S gauge track, produced from 1946 to 1967, was 20 inches. Other radii were also available from other manufacturers.
My Amana dishwasher stopped washing dishes well. If you Amana dishwasher isn’t cleaning dishes well, maybe this will help. And this advice will apply for Amana’s related brands Whirlpool, Kenmore, and Maytag.
The term root cause is used in engineering and related disciplines. It simply means identifying the source of a bigger issue. Finding the root cause helps to keep the problem from happening again.
What is dollar cost averaging? Think of it as a way to spread out risk when investing in stocks, bonds, or other equities. It keeps you from paying too much at any given time.
The way you make money in investments is by buying low and selling high, but you never know what the high and low points of the market will be. Dollar cost averaging helps you to avoid the highs.
I read a tweet this weekend from a prominent political commentator disparaging doctors of osteopathy, DOs for short. He said only MDs are legitimate doctors. That’s not at all true. Let’s take a look at a DO vs an MD. There’s a difference, but it doesn’t at all mean DOs are less competent.
DOs are recognized by all 50 states and are licensed to prescribe drugs, administer vaccines, and perform surgery just like an MD. Web sites that suggest a DO is basically a chiropractor are using outdated and incomplete information. While some people consider osteopathy a form of alternative medicine, that’s an incomplete perspective. The majority of what DOs practice is completely mainstream medicine.