Many years ago, back when I worked on a helpdesk at work, I used to sit in on interviews. Management wanted me there to gauge the technical and troubleshooting skills of each candidate, which I did by presenting the following scenario: “a user calls the helpdesk and says they can’t print to one of our network printers. How would you… read entire post
Category Archives: Computers/Tech/Games
Boatfest 2025 | West Virginia and Back!
For the fourth year in a row I attended “Boatfest”, a gathering of retrocomputing enthusiasts that takes place in Hurricane, West Virginia. The gathering was originally organized by John “BoatOfCar” Shawler, which is where Boatfest got its name. After years of confusion from people wondering where the boats were, the gathering was officially rebranded as the International Retro Computer Expo… read entire post
My Retro is Retro!
People occasionally ask me how long I’ve been into “retro” gaming and I never have a good answer for them because I’ve been playing a lot of these retro games since before they were retro. Here’s an interesting thing I ran across today that reminded me of that fact.
I was interviewed for an article titled “Classic Video Games Make… read entire post
The Case of the Changing Blog
I rarely re-read or revisit old blog posts on this site. Generally speaking I write them, give them a quick once over, and send them on their way. The only time I look up old posts is to either verify a date or find a link to send to someone. That’s what I was doing over the weekend when I… read entire post
Breathing New Life into an Old Laptop with ChromeOS Flex
I have a hard time parting with old laptops, especially when there’s nothing wrong with them other than the fact that Microsoft Windows has expanded past their capabilities. The typical response you’ll get from nerds like me when this happens is “install Linux on it,” which is not a one-size-fits-all solution and, at a minimum, requires familiarizing oneself with a… read entire post
Kevin Mitnick (1963-2023)
Earlier this week I was informed that Kevin Mitnick, the “world’s most infamous hacker,” had passed away. I was asked to sit on the news until the family had time to release a statement, but word travels fast and this morning it appeared on the front page of the New York Post.
For those who haven’t heard or read the… read entire post
Boatfest 2023 Recap
Last weekend I attended the second annual Boatfest gathering, which again took place in Hurricane, West Virginia. Despite its name, the event has nothing to do with boats — it’s a gathering of retrocomputing and retrogaming enthusiasts named after the organizer, John “Boat of Car” Shawler.
Boatfest is difficult to summarize because it’s different things to different people. Some people… read entire post
An Up-Down Experience at the Up-Down Arcade
Last weekend my buddy Jeff and I visited Oklahoma City’s Up-Down Arcade. Up-Down is a barcade (21 to enter) with a full bar, a kitchen that sells pizza by the slice, and sixty(ish) arcade games. Jeff and I were hanging out in arcades together years before either of us were old enough to drive, and nearly 40 years later we’re… read entire post
When Expensive Things Become Worthless: My Sony DVD Burner
Recently while digging through a pile of old electronics in my workshop I stumbled across this, my old Sony DVD/CD burner.
I began purchasing audio CDs in the early 90s, and bought completely into the format in 1993 when my car was broken into and all of my favorite cassettes were stolen. I never thought people would be able to… read entire post
Boatfest 2022
I met John “Boatofcar” Shawler online twenty years ago on the Digital Press forums. Although “Boat” is nearly a decade younger than I am, the two of us share a a common love of old computers, games, and arcade machines. Boat has been a fan and supporter of my podcasts from the very beginning, and several years ago he, along… read entire post