Tag: technology.

The first computer I ever owned was an HP Pavilion 7850 desktop tower that I picked up at a thrift store for $16 at the start of my Junior year of high school in the Fall of 2003.

A short while back, I picked up one of those newfangled folding phones so I could (ostensibly) read more. This purchase obviously went against my “single-purpose devices” and “offline-first technology” rules, but I got caught up in a wave of techno-consumerism that ended up inspiring additional purchases of new wireless...

It’s been a few weeks since I published my last Sunday Reboot. In fact, I’ve published just about nothing in February altogether.

Happy Sunday, friends.

I’ve written before about my love for thrift stores.

Happy Sunday, friends!

A few years back, I picked up an AlphaSmart 3000 to try and do some writing without the distraction of an entire computer.

I’ve written before about my undying love of typewriters. The *clickety-clack* of the keys, the smell of the ink, the feeling of the machine under your hands… I even love the inevitable ink smudges you get on your fingers from pulling the paper off the drum too fast.

I know that I’ve written about this subject before, but can I just say that I love “obsolete” technology?

I’m a little obsessive about backwards compatibility on the web, and one thing that can be particularly sticky are image formats. While I know that GIF is the most widely supported format across both space and time, I wanted to better understand what is actually available across the wide-spectrum of...

It’s been a while since I’ve written anything for myself.

It’s 2023 now, and one of my themes for the year is simplification. I’ve let life get too chaotic, so I’m making some moves to reduce my cognitive load, one of which is reducing the amount of digital infrastructure I rely on and manage. So, it is with a heavy...

I still remember the first CD I ever bought myself: 311’s self-titled album, purchased in the 4th grade with my own hard-earned birthday money at the recommendation of a friend who I’m pretty sure based his entire musical taste on the presence Parental Advisory sticker.

I’ve done some writing before on sustainability as it pertains to technology, and some of my efforts to keep my own tech (and some salvaged tech) alive and useful for as long as possible. The amount of e-waste we generate is staggering, and as technology becomes obsolete, the throwing-away of...

Remember when using The Internet was a chore? You had to wait for hours before the one family computer was free, and when you finally did get on it, everything was so damn slow you had no choice but to exercise a degree of patience no child should be capable...

I’ve written a bit before about how my relationship with technology has changed over the years, but one thing that has become abundantly clear to me is that the ubiquity of smartphones in our world has now made it impossible to live without one.

Sometime near the end of this year, every Apple computer in my home will be rendered obsolete and insecure. To be more accurate, every Apple computer released prior to 2013 will suffer the same fate, thanks to the impending death of macOS Catalina.

What is it about smartphones that make them the most useful technology ever created, while at the same time being the single-largest source of brain drain and anxiety in existence?

Let’s face it: the internet is broken. It feels like so much of the web is composed of clickbait, ads, popups, and a toxic amount of JavaScript that you need a modern computer just to get any value out of it. Remember when low-power computers were created for people who...

I found my old Audiovox XV6600 Pocket PC in storage a few weeks ago and have been trying to get it back in working order. As you can imagine, the original battery had ballooned after 15 years in a box, but after a quick eBay adventure I was able to...

I revived my old Linksys WRT54G the other day. With a little help from dd-wrt, I powered my home network with it nearly 20 years ago, but thanks to improvements in wireless speeds eventually retired it to the ‘ole “boxed hoard of cable and gadgets.” Not being one to let...

I finally installed LineageOS on my old Nexus 5x. I’m not entirely sure why I did it, seeing as Lineage dropped support for the 5x over a year ago, but the simple act of deGoogling one of the most Googley of the Googled devices I have felt surprisingly cathartic. Sometimes...

Years ago, before Google and I stopped seeing eye-to-eye, I bought an Asus Chromebook C100P. It’s a great, cheap little machine with mediocre specs and decent battery life that was good for browsing the web and not much else. I had originally intended to get a lightweight laptop for writing...

I started listening to Andy Weir’s “Project Hail Mary” audiobook today, and I have to say that Ray Porter is the single-best audiobook narrator in the business. The guy brings so much personality to his work that there is a marked difference between reading a book yourself and listening to...

I’ve been experimenting with offline-first technology lately. Typewriters, cassette decks, Game Boys… I like single-purpose tools that can’t distract, divert, or otherwise take my attention away from what I am doing – seriously, why the hell does a fridge need an internet connection?

Popped into the thrift store today, just to see what I could find. I like looking for new VHS movies to import or older technology I can rescue, but today… I stumbled upon a treasure trove of semi-modern gadgets for a tenth what they would cost on eBay. For myself,...

I have a weird appreciation for “upgrading” old (see: obsolete) technology. I don’t know what, exactly, but there’s just something completely satisfying about surfing the wave between the past and the present. In one sense, finding ways to extend the life-span of aging tech is exciting; but, in a completely...

Like many technologists out there (see: nerds), I have an inordinate amount of obsolete technology that I can’t seem to make use of, nor part ways with. The thought of trashing perfectly good gadgets is a painful one, and not the least bit unsustainable. There are enough old smartphones and...

A few years ago, I picked up this 1941 Royal Arrow typewriter at the local antique store. Originally, the plan for this beautiful piece of machinery was to use it to decorate my home office, but then 2020 happened. A few months into this godawful year, I picked my typewriter...