Seeing the World Through Animal Eyes
If you think about it, you can’t be sure that what you see for the color red, for example, is what anyone else in the world actually sees. All you …read more Continue reading Seeing the World Through Animal Eyes
Author Archives: Al Williams
The Sweetest Programming Language: MNM
Admit it. If you haven’t created your own little programming language, you’ve probably at least thought about it. [Muffed] decided to create a unique — and sweet — programming language …read more Continue reading The Sweetest Programming Language: MNM
Last Year in SBCs
While it might not be comprehensive, [Bret.dk] recently posted a retrospective titled “Every Single Board Computer I Tested in 2025.” The post covers 15 boards from 8 different companies. The …read more Continue reading Last Year in SBCs
Hiding a Bomb in Plain Sight
You are at war. Trains are key to keeping your army supplied with fuel, ammunition, food, and medical supplies. But, inexplicably, your trains keep blowing up. Sabotage? Enemy attack? There’s …read more Continue reading Hiding a Bomb in Plain Sight
Remotely Unlocking an Encrypted Hard Disk
Can you remotely unlock an encrypted hard disk? [Jyn] needed to unlock their home server after it rebooted even if they weren’t home. Normally, they used Tailscale to remote in, …read more Continue reading Remotely Unlocking an Encrypted Hard Disk
Linux Hotplug Events Explained
There was a time when Linux was much simpler. You’d load a driver, it would find your device at boot up, or it wouldn’t. That was it. Now, though, people …read more Continue reading Linux Hotplug Events Explained
Linux Hotplug Events Explained
There was a time when Linux was much simpler. You’d load a driver, it would find your device at boot up, or it wouldn’t. That was it. Now, though, people …read more Continue reading Linux Hotplug Events Explained
SpyTech: The Underwater Wire Tap
In the 1970s, the USSR had an undersea cable connecting a major naval base at Petropavlovsk to the Pacific Fleet headquarters at Vladivostok. The cable traversed the Sea of Okhotsk, …read more Continue reading SpyTech: The Underwater Wire Tap
Linux Fu: The USB WiFi Dongle Exercise
If you’ve used Linux for a long time, you know that we are spoiled these days. Getting a new piece of hardware back in the day was often a horrible …read more Continue reading Linux Fu: The USB WiFi Dongle Exercise
Philco Bet the Farm on The Predicta… and Lost
Philco was a common household brand for many years. The company started in 1892, making street lights. Then they pivoted to batteries. This was big business when early radios were …read more Continue reading Philco Bet the Farm on The Predicta… and Lost