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Why Dave Parker isn’t in the Hall of Fame

Dave Farquhar Baseball August 29, 2022December 9, 2024

Dave Parker, the slugging outfielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates among others, is an interesting Hall of Fame case. During his years of eligibility through conventional means, support for his candidacy was a bit tepid. He is a very good example of a borderline player, someone who fell just short of being a slam dunk case. So here’s why Dave Parker isn’t (wasn’t) in the Hall of Fame, and who says he should be in, and why.

Update: On December 8, 2024, the Classic Baseball Era committee elected Dave Parker and Dick Allen to the Hall of Fame.

Japanese tin trains

Dave Farquhar Toy trains August 25, 2022June 4, 2022

Some time ago, I had an idea to build a tin HO scale train layout using one or more old Japanese tin trains. I never got around to it, but Ralph Graves had the idea independently of me, and unlike me, he followed through and built what he imagined in his mind. The results are, in a word, spectacular.

Advantages of CRT over LCD

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing August 24, 2022June 4, 2023

CRT displays certainly have a following. And there are any number of reasons for that. I generally prefer LCD, but there are times when CRT is better, especially when it comes to retro gaming. In this blog post, I’ll cover the advantages of CRT over LCD.
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Are thrift stores open on Sunday?

Dave Farquhar Saving money August 23, 2022June 4, 2022

There is a perception that thrift stores are not open on Sunday. There was a time when that perception was more than just a perception, and in some parts of the country, it may be truer than in others. The reasons makes sense once you think about it. Let’s talk about which thrift stores are open on Sunday, which ones aren’t, and why that might be.

Computer Reset, Dallas

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing August 22, 2022February 23, 2026

Computer Reset was a large used computer store and warehouse in northeast Dallas whose heyday was in the 1980s and 1990s, but it remained a go-to source for vintage and retro computer parts into the 2010s. Its fame grew after it closed in 2019 when several prominent Youtubers visited the facility and made videos about it.

Colber electric train accessories

Dave Farquhar Toy trains August 18, 2022September 22, 2022

Colber was a manufacturer of electric train accessories from 1949 to 1954, and electronics components from 1955 to around 1995. They were based in Irvington, New Jersey. The name was an amalgamation of its founders’ last names, Collett and Burke.

Why East St Louis is so poor

Dave Farquhar St. Louis August 17, 2022June 17, 2023

East St. Louis is a legendary American city, for all the wrong reasons. Those three words conjure up thoughts of extreme poverty, extreme crime, and danger, sometimes perceived, and sometimes very real. It wasn’t always that way, to hear some locals talk. Others will tell you it was always that way.

In its prime, East St Louis was the place you went because if you couldn’t get a job there, you couldn’t get a job anywhere. And after the late 1960s, it became the place you stayed when you had no other options, but how it became that is something of a geographic and historical accident.

IBM PC Compact Printer model 5181

Dave Farquhar Retro Computing August 16, 2022May 10, 2024

The IBM PC Compact Printer is a bit of a misnomer, as it was really intended for the PCjr. But it ended up working with a bunch of other computers as well as part of its second act. Here’s the story of IBM’s inexpensive model 5181 printer.

How to read a Qualys scan report

Dave Farquhar security August 15, 2022August 7, 2022

Reading and analyzing a Qualys scan is an underrated skill. Frankly, I see a lot of misuse and abuse surrounding Qualys scans. So let’s talk about how to read and analyze a Qualys scan for the purpose of understanding and solving problems.

You can read it in the user interface but I recommend exporting a CSV so you can sort and filter. The exact CSV format has changed a bit over the years so they may not be in this exact order. But this will get you started. The most important columns are all here.

Marx 6-inch observation car

Dave Farquhar Toy trains August 11, 2022April 4, 2024

The Marx observation passenger car was a 6-inch passenger car based on the design Marx used for its 6-inch freights. The basic design underwent some changes and updates over the years, but Marx used the name from 1935 to 1942, then resumed production in 1946 and continued until 1961. Observation cars ran on the end of passenger trains and had a platform that passengers could use to admire the landscape as the train moved.