David L. Farquhar on technology old and new, computer security, and more
Erector sets frequently are missing screws, or they have screws but they’ve suffered the ravages of time. Fortunately the Erector set screw size was a standard 8-32, so you can substitute modern screws and/or nuts to replace damaged or missing originals, or if you just find them easier to work with.
If you’re into retro computing, the Commodore 64 is hard to escape. It was the most popular computer model of all time, so it was everywhere in the 1980s. But the machine does have its quirks, which can be either endearing or maddening. Here’s what to look for in a Commodore 64.
Certain models and eras of Commodore 64 are more dependable than others. Early models will appeal to people who want something slightly challenging to repair, while a newer model is definitely better for someone who wants a retro machine that works without putting up a fuss.
The retail market is certainly changing and there’s a lot of consolidation in the market. But some retail categories have pretty much dried up on a national level, like toy stores. It ought to be a safe market, because new kids are born every year to replace kids who become adults. What’s behind the decline of toy stores?
While there’s been a degree of mismanagement involved in the decline of the two most recent toy store chains to go belly-up, both Toys R Us and Kay-Bee Toys had something else in common, and it wasn’t Amazon. They didn’t need to survive for their owners to make money, and that’s why they ultimately didn’t.
The holes in the ties on American Flyer S gauge track are absurdly small, so fastening American Flyer track has been a mystery for ages. What size fasteners can you use?
American Flyer veterans recommend using #17 wire brad nails, 1 inch long. Drilling pilot holes helps if you have a small enough bit, a #56 or smaller.
I helped a company troubleshoot its vulnerability scans recently. They had multiple Windows domains because of their line of business. This made scans difficult, but we found some solutions. Here are some tips for authenticated scans across multiple domains.
Scanning multiple domains in a single scan can cause account lockouts if the usernames and passwords don’t all match. Possible solutions include separating each domain into its own scan, using completely unique accounts to scan, syncing up the accounts so they have the same username and password, or using Cyber-Ark to match up credentials to machines.
To paraphrase an old commercial, you can’t keep your vintage computer from getting old. But you can keep it from looking old. Clean vintage computers in good condition are more enjoyable, or at least easier to admire for the era they represent. And usually, no matter how neglected the computer is, you can clean it up and make it look nearly new as long as there’s little to no physical damage.
There are many inexpensive household cleaners that work well on vintage computers. That means without spending a lot of money, you can get your vintage computers looking much better.
My son had problems with his computer. Any time he went to Youtube, instead of getting video, he got a prompt that said “Click to enable video converter.” Virus is a strong word, but video converter is software you don’t want. Here’s how to fix it.
Run Malwarebytes, let it scan your system, quarantine everything it doesn’t like, then reboot. That’s all it takes to remove Video Converter. Don’t waste your time with those other websites that give generic information that doesn’t work.
One morning I went to use my Windows 10 PC and brought up the start menu only to get an unpleasant surprise. The contents of the menu scrolled to the end uncontrollably, rendering it unusable. If your start menu keeps scrolling down, here’s how to fix it.
Generally speaking, a scrolling start menu or other menu is due to a fault on some USB-attached peripheral, such as a game controller or keyboard. Unplugging USB devices should allow you to isolate the problem.
What’s the maximum grade for Lionel trains? What’s the recommended grade for Lionel trains? The two are very different, and the first really depends on what compromises you are willing to make.
Generally speaking it’s best to go with a 2-2.5 percent grade on elevations with Lionel trains. But you can push it, if you’re feeling lucky. The shorter the trains you are willing to run and the more actively you are willing to adjust the throttle, the higher the grade you can get away with.
It’s possible to use a modern AC adapter to make a power supply for vintage machines. Sometimes this is desirable, because the modern supply may be more reliable than the old ones. But we have to know how to wire it. Here’s how to find positive and negative DC wires so you can wire the supply up properly when you change its plug.
To find the positive and negative wires, apply power to the AC adapter, set your multimeter to DC, then apply the red and black leads to the output and find a combination that gives you positive voltage. Whichever wire is connected to your multimeter’s red lead is positive, and the one on the black lead is negative or ground.