Today's project was upgrading an iMac 21” (2.7 GHz i5, Late 2013) to be useful for my friend's school. From a 5400rpm 2.5" spinner to a SATA SSD, 8 to 16 GB RAM, and Sequoia 15.7 via Open Core Patcher.

This is probably one of the worst computer designs ever.

It's taped together so you need a kit of shaped strips to re-assemble it.

Then both circuit boards lever in under the "chin” so you're terrified you're going to scrape off some SMD capacitor on a screw when maneuvering. 0/10 design.

#mb

Today's project was upgrading an iMac 21” (2.7 GHz i5, Late 2013) to be useful for my friend's school. From a 5400rpm 2.5" spinner to a SATA SSD, 8 to 16 GB RAM, and Sequoia 15.7 via Open Core Patcher.

This is probably one of the worst computer designs ever.

It's taped together so you need a kit of shaped strips to re-assemble it.

Then both circuit boards lever in under the "chin” so you're terrified you're going to scrape off some SMD capacitor on a screw when maneuvering. 0/10 design.

#mb

Picked up that Classic Mac building bricks set off of aliexpress as a xmas present to myself. Very cute, I love the included detail of the inside of the machine, with the analog board and CRT neck bits.

But it seems my set was missing one of the "cables” for the peripherals so I had to cut the one they sent me in two, leading to the mouse cable being a bit short. I guess that's what you get for $7.

#VintageApple #RetroComputing #mb

Picked up that Classic Mac building bricks set off of aliexpress as a xmas present to myself. Very cute, I love the included detail of the inside of the machine, with the analog board and CRT neck bits.

But it seems my set was missing one of the "cables” for the peripherals so I had to cut the one they sent me in two, leading to the mouse cable being a bit short. I guess that's what you get for $7.

#VintageApple #RetroComputing #mb

To me the holidays have always had a mental connection to playing with classic Macs, since as a kid visiting relatives also meant visiting my uncle who had a sweet PowerMac 7100 setup, lots of magazine cover discs to peruse, etc

For my #GlobalTalk friends this year I've prepared a little holiday fun pak - a collection of utilities, icons, schemes and games to give your Mac a festive glow-up!

Check it out on Blackbird (or landisk) on BaroNet on GlobalTalk!

#VintageApple #RetroComputing #mb

huh. TIL: there is a “four corners” place in Canada, like there is more famously in the USA, where Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico meet.

But ours is automatically cooler, figuratively and literally*, because it is a: at 60° Latitude, and b: involves two Territories and two Provinces.

It is where the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba meet.

It is also a LOT harder to get to. Though arguably, as it is amongst the thousands of lakes in the area, during the summer, a float plane would get you there.

Also, technically. It is not a perfect “joining” on the map which is just bad planning on Canada’s part, but at least it is hiking distance. Or that might be just a projection issue. They seem to converge at 60N 102W. I guess I could consult an official boundary document or something :)

Apple Map location: https://maps.apple/p/W9ucIgoQCikMLM

Edit: Google Maps has a photo! Added here… of the four cornered boundary monument!
*seasons and ongoing #agw not withstanding
#geography #uselessKnowledge #nerd #maps #canada #sk #mb #nwt #yt #climatechange

First time driving a Kei truck today. Free loaner from the hardware store.

Long time since I’ve seen manual-crank windows. The AM/FM radio didn’t work, but it actually had the speaker IN the single-DIN unit, not wired into the dash or doors, it must have sounded horrible.

Sharing the load with our daily driver Kei minivan, hauled a total of 1,400 kg of sand and gravel for our walkway in 2 trips. It did the trick!

#WeirdCarMastodon #KeiTruck #mb

First time driving a Kei truck today. Free loaner from the hardware store.

Long time since I’ve seen manual-crank windows. The AM/FM radio didn’t work, but it actually had the speaker IN the single-DIN unit, not wired into the dash or doors, it must have sounded horrible.

Sharing the load with our daily driver Kei minivan, hauled a total of 1,400 kg of sand and gravel for our walkway in 2 trips. It did the trick!

#WeirdCarMastodon #KeiTruck #mb

I figured it couldn’t hurt to drop in to HARD OFF on my walk back from the mall.

Wandering through the Junk PC aisle, a double-take, what is that teal beauty on the bottom shelf?

A SiliconGraphics O2? In MY rural Japanese city? How did that get here? The tag showed it had been there for over a week. At $60 I had to give it a home!

Lugging it home in the 31+C heat, squeezing in on the tram and dashing through the rain was a slog but it made it home!

#silicongraphics #sgi#RetroComputing #mb

Picked up this book: "Sayonara bombs!" a troubleshooting guide to System 7. Along with generic system maintenance tips and explanations of a whole range of errors, it also dives into decoding sad mac codes and system error codes.

#VintageApple#RetroComputing #mb