Stomper 4x4s were an extremely popular battery powered motorized toy in the early 1980s. They were the first miniature battery powered self-propelled toy vehicle with four-wheel drive, although imitators were very quick to follow.
How the Tandy 2000 doomed Tandy computers
The Tandy 2000 was aptly named. It was twice as good as the Tandy 1000 in nearly every way. But it wasn’t even half as successful. In this blog post, I will explain how the Tandy 2000’s commercial failure set the tone for subsequent Tandy computers and perhaps even doomed the whole product line.
Intel 80186 CPU: So misunderstood
Back when a 386 or 486 PC was hot stuff, I remember a common insult for a slow PC being, “What is that thing, a 186?” But no one we knew had a 186 PC, and no one really knew why either. In this blog, post, we will explore the Intel 80186, the CPU the PC industry forgot, why a misconception exists that it was a failure, and how both things can be true at the same time.
Although the 80186 powered two infamous PC-compatible flops in the early 1980s, a company founded by two Californians in a garage did use a 186-compatible CPU in a pioneering handheld computer about a decade later. Additionally, the 186 saw use in other embedded applications.
Marx Happi-Time 9640 train set
Marx train set 9640 was an electric train set Marx that Sears sold in 1952. You may also hear collectors refer to it as Happi-Time train set 9635, because that’s what Marx printed on the box. It featured Marx’s best locomotive pulling 3/16 scale metal cars. This set marked the farewell for that locomotive, as Marx bundled the set to use up remaining discontinued inventory, to clear the way for its 1953 product refresh.
What happened to Adaptec?
For about 20 years, Adaptec was synonymous with SCSI controllers for PCs. Their controllers were frequently imitated, and its competitors undercut them in price. But the reliability, performance, and compatibility of Adaptec products was tough to beat. So if you wanted the very best, you bought Adaptec. In this blog post, I’ll uncover what happened to Adaptec. Hint: they didn’t go out of business.
Configure mystery jumperless NE2000 cards
The NE2000 doesn’t have the best reputation, and that may not exactly be deserved. Today, the biggest problem with them is getting a jumperless NE2000 card configured when you don’t have the disks that came with it, and you can’t find any identifying marks on the card that point you to a manufacturer. Furthermore, even if you identify the card, the setup disk may or may not be available anywhere. So it’s not exactly a wonder that most retro Youtubers just use 3com and Intel cards.
Reduce the pinginess of a mechanical keyboard
A mechanical keyboard will always be louder than a membrane keyboard because of their physical characteristics. A membrane keyboard involves a plastic tray with some keyboard sliders striking a rubber membrane to make contact with a circuit board. Mechanical keyboards almost always have a metal plate that holds mechanical switches with springs in them, so even a linear switch that doesn’t click still makes a tapping noise when it bottoms out, and when bottoming out, it can make that metal plate vibrate and make a pinging noise. Here’s how I reduced the pinginess of my mechanical keyboard.
Marx train set 4338 for W.T. Grant
The Marx 4338 was a low end train set that was the result of a long time collaboration between two companies who were nearing the end of the line. It was an inexpensive electric train set exclusive to W.T. Grant, which was still the third fastest growing retailer in the United States at the time.
What defense in depth is in information security
Defense in depth is a common phrase you hear in information security. It’s also frequently misunderstood. In this blog post, I’ll provide links to a couple of examples of defense in depth, and provide some insights into the mindset. Because more than anything else, defense in depth is a mindset that takes more than seeing examples to grasp.
Are Black Friday tools any good?
Black Friday is the biggest shopping day of the year in the United States. But not all Black Friday deals are what they first appear to be. That’s true in the case of tools. But if you know what you’re getting, they can still be fine for what they are. It’s not necessarily a case of whether Black Friday tools are any good, but rather, if they are suitable for your intended use case.